Tottenham 3-1 Blackburn

Tottenham striker Roman Pavlyuchenko was on target again to help defeat Blackburn at White Hart Lane and maintain his side's hopes of a top-four finish in the Barclays Premier League.

Pavlyuchenko has been unsettled for most of the season and looked set to leave during the January transfer window but stayed at the club and has now played a big part in Spurs' push for Champions League qualification.

Jermain Defoe opened the scoring against Sam Allardyce's men, then Pavlyuchenko doubled the lead before Christopher Samba pulled one back.

Hopes of a Blackburn comeback, however, were dashed when Pavlyuchenko scored his eighth in his last six games.

Defoe returned to the starting XI for the Barclays Premier League clash at White Hart Lane. It meant Spurs boss Harry Redknapp had Peter Crouch on the bench in his only change from the side which earned an FA Cup quarter-final draw against Fulham last time out.

Blackburn boss Sam Allardyce made three changes from the team which lost to Liverpool a fortnight ago, with David Dunn returning from a calf injury, while Brett Emerton and former Spurs full-back Pascal Chimbonda were drafted in. Junior Hoilett, Keith Andrews and El-Hadji Diouf were on the bench.

Despite one Premier League win away from Ewood Park this season, Blackburn showed attacking intent in the early stages, starting with Dunn's 50-yard box-to-box run that required midfielder Wilson Palacios to track back into his own penalty area.

When Chimbonda skipped past Niko Kranjcar down the left flank, he pulled the ball back to Martin Olsson and Sebastien Bassong blocked the shot.

Spurs' first chance came when Benoit Assou-Ekotto burst into the area and prodded over a cross - but Roman Pavlyuchenko, preferred to Crouch in the starting XI, stabbed his finish into the ground and over. The Russian also fired wide from Bale's cross.

At the other end Dunn felt he could have been awarded a penalty when he carried the ball into the area - Palacios won the ball fairly but Vedran Corluka cut across the midfielder at the same time.

Blackburn were forced into a change after 25 minutes. Paul Robinson, granted a warm welcome from his former club, was helped off after picking up an injury to his left leg, with Jason Brown coming off the bench.

Brown was nearly beaten shortly after when Gareth Bale, who had the beating of Michel Salgado for pace, dashed around the Spanish veteran but fired wide.

Brown then saved at full stretch before the break when Assou-Ekotto's early cross from the left angled towards the bottom corner. He then parried a Defoe effort after Luka Modric sent him through.

But Defoe was on target in stoppage time of the first half. Kranjcar's corner was flicked on by Corluka and Defoe was at the far post to tap home.

Nikola Kalinic mis-controlled when he had sight of goal just after the break - and Spurs punished Rovers with the 55th minute with the second goal.

Spurs were defending a corner when the move started, with Modric carrying the ball forward and finding Defoe. He resisted the temptation to shoot and laid on Pavlyuchenko, whose finish went through Brown.

Modric could have added another when Sebastien Bassong carried the ball out of defence and found his team-mate - but the Croatia playmaker dragged his finish wide.

Bale felt he should have had a penalty when Salgado challenged but Webb pointed for a goal kick and did not book the Wales international.

Webb turned down another appeal when Bale went over a challenge by Morten Gamst Pedersen, with Samba setting up a nervous finish when he headed home from Pedersen's cross.

Pavlyuchenko, however, grabbed his second five minutes before the end when he clipped home Bale's cross.

He was denied a hat-trick when Samba cleared off the line, then Kalinic had an effort chalked off for handball.