Premier League: Tottenham comeback shatters Manchester City

Tottenham staged a thrilling fightback to defeat Manchester City 3-1 at White Hart Lane and boost their hopes of a top-four finish.

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini admitted after the match that he was shocked by the result as he felt his side had been superior, and was left to rue their failure to make it 2-0. "It is incredible that we lost this game because we had everything under control for 80 minutes," he told Sky Sports. "We had a lot of chances to score a second goal, but this is football." Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas paid tribute to the character shown by his men and played down the significance of his own tactical decisions. He said: "I must praise the team for their fighting spirit and it was great to see them turn it around in the second half because the first half was not to our level. "It comes down to the character of the players. All three that came on showed that desire and ambition to help the team, and in the end we were able to punish them."