Match of the Week That Was: Week beginning September 25th

However, it's Nottingham Forest's visit to White Hart Lane that's this week's Match of the Week. Gheorghe Popescu makes his league debut for Spurs, while unbeaten Forest, led by dazzling Dutchman Bryan Roy, with Norwegian Lars Bohinen a solid mid-field presence and Stan Collymore, Steve Stone and Stuart Pearce all playing with sense and imagination, are looking championship material. Stone, put in by Collymore in the ninth minute, opens the scoring with a hard low shot but, with Spurs' Jurgen Klinsmann rampaging, Forest's full backs Colin Cooper and Steve Chettle have to work hard to keep the back door bolted. Nevertheless, Ilie Dumitrsecu scores a magnificent equaliser and had Teddy Sheringham scored from the spot a minute before half time, Forest would have been a goal behind. Sheringham has now missed three successive penalties. After the interval, it's all Forest. Stone provides crosses for Roy to score with head and left foot and Bohinen chips over keeper Ian Walker with complete assurance 11 minutes from time. Spurs manager Ardiles has problems as it's Spurs third home defeat in four having conceded 18 goals.

Our Match of the Week, therefore, sees the Lions take on QPR. The Millwall side have Barry Horne, Ian Dawes, Terry Hurlock, as well as Teddy Sheringham and Tony Cascarino while mid-table Rangers are represented by Wayne Fereday, Mark Stein, Kevin Brock, Nicky Johns, Paul Parker, Martin Allen and the veteran Trevor Francis. However, Millwall are hardly out of Rangers' half in the first ten minutes – George Lawrence, challenged by Mark Dennis, takes a free kick, taps it to Hurlock who floats a perfect cross over for Cascarino to head past Johns. Then Lawrence limps off to be replaced by Jimmy Carter and Millwall lose momentum. Rangers manage to catch their breath and score from their first attack! Stein and Brock combine to find Francis on the edge of the area and his instant turn and shot past Horne is reminiscent of goals scored in his great days. Within three minutes, Hurlock decides things. He seizes on Brock's back pass, draws Johns and slips the ball to Cascarino – who taps in for his eighth of the season. Two minutes later, Hurlock dispossesses Brock 30 yards out and crashes an unstoppable shot past Johns. In the second half, Tony Cascarino is robbed of his hat-trick by a questionable offside decision. Francis misses a penalty before Allen adds Rangers' second - but it looks much closer than it was.

From the outset, there's little Villa can do against a Spurs side producing simple, fluid, attacking football. The interplay between half backs Dave Mackay and Danny Blanchflower is crucial with John White, the main link with the defence, showing great enthusiasm and stamina. In 30 minutes it is all over. In a flowing move, Peter Baker, Blanchflower and Cliff Jones open the way for White's first goal as he shoots Jones' centre first time beyond keeper Nigel Sims' dive; White, from the left wing, curves in number two as Bobby Smith plays decoy. Smith helps himself to number three as Mackay's thundering shot bounces back to him, and White, with guile and tenacity from the left allows Terry Dyson to show the venom of his left foot. White's long pass then sends Les Allen in for number five. However, although four goals down after half an hour and a fifth just after half time, Villa's centre forward Gerry Hitchens and Jimmy MacEwan on the wing continue to worry Maurice Norman and the Spurs defence and both Villa men score from each other's crosses. But Spurs have the last word, Mackay scoring a great final goal with a searing volley. It's Spurs' tenth consecutive victory with 32 goals scored!