After a mediocre attacking display in their midweek draw at West Ham, Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou said he would have loved a joystick to put his players where he wanted them.
It is doubtful he would have placed two of his back four inside the Nottingham Forest box on Sunday night when their goalscoring opportunities arose. But where his forwards failed, his defenders triumphed.
Two lethal piledrivers, the first from centre back Micky van de Ven, the second from right back Pedro Porro, saw Spurs take control of the battle for the top four.