Spurs Win On Muamba's Night

Emmanuel Adebayor struck twice as Tottenham recovered some of their sparkle to maintain their hold on fourth spot in the Barclays Premier League tonight.

In the week their manager Harry Redknapp learned he would not succeed Fabio Capello as England manager, Spurs played more like the side they were before the speculation he would become national boss began.

Bolton's Nigel Reo-Coker cancelled out a stunning strike from Luka Modric at the Reebok Stadium but three goals in nine minutes from Spurs, one from Rafael van der Vaart and Adebayor's double, ended the contest.

The victory took them within two points of third-placed Arsenal but left Bolton in deep relegation trouble.

It was an emotional night for the hosts with Fabrice Muamba returning to the ground for the first time since suffering a cardiac arrest during the FA Cup tie between the same two teams in March.

The Trotters midfielder accepted a standing ovation from all sides of the ground as he was introduced on the pitch before kick-off but attention then shifted to Bolton's battle against the drop.

The hosts' failure to make the most of a dominant spell after Reo-Coker's equaliser proved costly as they slipped to a defeat that leaves them in the bottom three.

They showed determination and composure early on in what was their game in hand but it was Spurs who had the first serious opportunities when Adam Bogdan was forced into a double save.

Bogdan, outstanding in the rearranged cup game against Spurs, parried a long-range drive from Gareth Bale and then reacted quickly to deny Van der Vaart.

Bale made a cutting charge into the area and pulled the ball back from the byline but there was no-one on hand to turn in.

Bolton pieced together a nice move to release Dedryck Boyata in the box but the right-back could only pick out Brad Friedel while David Ngog was unmarked in front of goal.

Bolton made another swift counter-attack as Martin Petrov broke clear down the left and whipped in a low cross which just evaded Kevin Davies.

Chris Eagles picked up possession and found Ngog but the Frenchman's shot was smothered by Friedel.

Spurs took the lead with Modric's spectacular strike after 37 minutes.

The visitors won a corner after Bogdan saved from Van der Vaart and the ball was put behind despite suspicion of handball from Sandro.

Bolton fans were incensed but Van der Vaart was allowed to chip to Modric outside the area and the Croatian chested down before blasting a swerving shot into the top corner.

Bolton should have been level before the break.

Eagles first shot wide with a long-range effort before Boyata put a golden opportunity over the bar from a stoppage-time corner.

Bolton had a scare early in the second half as David Wheater gifted possession to Van der Vaart but Tim Ream snuffed out the counter-attack.

The Trotters pulled themselves back level with a well-worked equaliser in the 51st minute.

Kevin Davies headed on Boyata's throw-in to Ngog and his backheel rolled perfectly for Reo-Coker, who fired a low shot past Friedel.

The goal lifted the crowd and Bolton upped the tempo.

Petrov found himself in a good position but scuffed a shot wide and three corners in quick succession caused some anxiety in the Spurs box.

Eagles was the next to take aim after another throw was hurled into the area but his effort went narrowly over.

Bolton paid for their failure to make the most of that spell as Spurs launched two quick counter-raids to score twice in as many minutes.

Bale first stretched the defence and Van der Vaart finished brilliantly as the Welshman slid an inviting ball into his path.

Barely seconds later, Lennon got behind the defence as he raced on to a long ball from Modric and squared for Adebayor to tap home.

Bolton briefly rallied but the game was put beyond their reach as Bale sent Adebayor clear and the on-loan Manchester City striker casually rounded Bogdan to score.

Tensions were evident as Bolton substitute Josh Vela crudely brought down Aaron Lennon, sparking a row on the touchlines between Spurs assistant boss Joe Jordan and Bolton manager Owen Coyle.

Redknapp appeared to step in as peacemaker and Vela was booked.

Bolton endured more frustration as Petrov crossed and both Kevin Davies and Eagles failed to trouble Friedel.

Adebayor tried his luck from distance in search of a hat-trick but chipped over.

Spurs played out time to record their first win at the Reebok Stadium and the travelling fans chanted their support of Redknapp.

Join OSM news service

Emotional Return to White Hart Lane

Bolton boss Owen Coyle admits he does not know how his players will react to Tuesday's return to White Hart Lane.

Coyle's side face Tottenham in a re-arranged FA Cup fixture that was abandoned after Fabrice Muamba had a cardiac arrest on 17 March.

"We will do our best, as we always try to do. Will it be emotional? Of course," said Coyle, who revealed further improvement in Muamba's health.

"But I can't say how it is going to be until we are physically there."

Muamba continues to improve in hospital with the 23-year-old said to be out of bed and eating.

"Because Fabrice is getting better, that allows us to play the match," said Coyle.

"If it was different circumstances, it might be a different conversation.

"The great thing is that he is getting better."

Coyle and chairman Phil Gartside will be part of a small Bolton delegation that intends to visit Muamba on Tuesday, the first Wanderers representation since club doctor Jonathan Tobin revealed the midfielder's heart had stopped beating for 78 minutes before medical staff finally managed to get it started.

"Everyone would want to be there but that would be impossible," said Coyle.

"Fabrice's recovery is paramount but the players who do go can filter back the news. That will help."

Tottenham midfielder Scott Parker expects players to be in the right frame of mind for the game. He said: "Fabrice's recovery has probably helped us a lot and I'm sure it's helped Bolton as well."

Both sides know that victory would set up a last four clash against Chelsea.

Parker knows his team-mates must not lose sight of what is at stake. He added: "It's a big prize and we would like a trip to Wembley and not just for the semi-final - we'd like to go to the final - so we are looking forward to it."

There will be a minute's applause before Tuesday's game and players from both sides will sign their shirts afterwards and auction them online, with the proceeds going to the London Chest Hospital, where Muamba is being treated, and three charities.

All About Muamba at Reebok Stadium

A mosaic spelling out the name and shirt number of Fabrice Muamba has been displayed by Bolton fans at the team's home game against Blackburn.

Muamba, 23, is still in hospital after suffering a cardiac arrest during Bolton's FA Cup tie with Tottenham at White Hart Lane last Saturday.

Fans in the lower tier of the Nat Lofthouse stand at the Reebok Stadium raised posters reading "Muamba 6".

A get well message was shown on the big screen as supporters chanted his name.

The screen had earlier shown a video compilation of Muamba's career in the build up to the game.'Terrific atmosphere'

Players from both teams wore shirts with "Muamba 6" on their backs during their pre-match warm-ups.

Former Bolton midfielder and England player Peter Reid told BBC Radio 5 live "it was very very moving".

He said: "Both sets of fans, the Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn fans were absolutely amazing.

"The atmosphere here is terrific, it's the best atmosphere I've ever seen at the Reebok."

Bolton's scheduled Premier League match away at Aston Villa on Tuesday was postponed following the midfielder's collapse.

Football shirt and scarf tributes were left outside Bolton's ground throughout the week.

Muamba's father Marcel and fiancee Shauna Magunda released a joint statement on Friday about the player's condition.

It said: "Even though Fabrice has made great progress over the last couple of days, he is still in intensive care and still has a long period of recovery ahead."

"He has asked that you please keep him in your prayers."'Trying circumstances'

Bolton chairman Phil Gartside said before the game that Muamba could remain with the club "as long as he wants".

"He will be here as long as he wants to be," he said.

"It is all about Fabrice. It is not a football story. It is a Muamba story."

Bolton manager Owen Coyle, who named an unchanged team from the club's last Premier League fixture, said the game against Blackburn would be "trying circumstances for everyone".

He said: "We are a tight-knit group of players. We are trying to build a family club here and Fabrice is a huge part of that.

"We have to be proud that we are at a fantastic club and do ourselves justice in football terms, knowing our thoughts will be with Fabrice."

Prematch : Bolton v Blackburn

Hodgson Relives Solbakken Collapse

Roy Hodgson says Fabrice Muamba's collapse last weekend stirred painful memories of when one of his own players suffered a cardiac arrest on the pitch.

Current West Brom head coach Hodgson was in charge of FC Copenhagen when midfielder Stale Solbakken, then aged 33, collapsed during a training session.

Hodgson said the former Norway international was pronounced "clinically dead" but eventually made a full recovery although it marked the end of his career.

Parallel

The manager said: "When I was at FC Copenhagen, exactly the same thing happened as with Muamba. It was a complete parallel.

"His heart stopped, he was clinically dead for a period of time. It happened on the training ground and we feared the worst when he left the training ground.

"As has happened at Bolton with Owen Coyle, the club shut down for three days.

"We had three days desperately waiting to hear news, what was going to happen, and when he was eventually going to be woken from the coma, what we would find?

"We waited to find if he would be fully recovered or had some major defect as a result of his heart stopping for that period of time.

"I remember how relieved and happy we all were when Stale woke up and started talking and the doctors told us there was no brain damage and he would be fit again.

"I am pleased to say Stale completely recovered 100% and has gone onto be a very successful coach and I only hope it is the same with Fabrice."

Hodgson added: "Stale didn't play again. Fabrice is a lot younger. Stale was 33 at the time. He had the pace-maker fitted but didn't play again on doctor's advice. That might not happen with Fabrice who is a lot younger.

"With Fabrice I know no more than what I hear on the news, but it all seems very positive and we are all very happy about that.

"Having experienced that myself, albeit in a training session, I can assure you it is not an experience you want.

"It is an experience which is a very chastening one and whenever people's lives are in danger in football, it makes you question where football really is in the grander scheme of things."

Muamba Showing Improvement

Fabrice Muamba "has been able to recognise family members and respond to questions appropriately", his club Bolton and hospital have jointly said.

The 23-year-old can "breathe independently" without a ventilator but remains in intensive care after a cardiac arrest on Saturday.

A joint statement by the London Chest Hospital and Bolton said he continued "to show signs of improvement".

It added his condition was no longer critical but remained serious.

An earlier statement had said "he is also moving his arms and legs" but "his long-term prognosis will remain unclear for some time".

The former England Under-21 player has been at the hospital's heart attack centre after suffering the cardiac arrest during Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final at White Hart Lane.

His fiancee, Shauna Magunda, the mother of his son Joshua, posted on Twitter on Monday evening: "All your prayers are working people thank you so so much. Every prayer makes him stronger."

A family friend, Curtis Codrington, also tweeted that he had visited Muamba in hospital on Monday night. He said the player was as "strong as an ox".

"He said my name words can't describe what I just saw," he added. "To see his wife, to be by his side was great."

Club chairman Phil Gartside and manager Owen Coyle visited the player on Monday morning.

In a statement placed on the club website, Gartside said: "The staff at the London Chest Hospital have been nothing short of exceptional and I would like to thank them all at this ongoing critical time.

"The support we had from Tottenham and our own fans was fantastic - the staff, the fans, the players and the officials at the game - it was unbelievable."

Manager Owen Coyle said: "Everybody is praying for Fabrice, which is very important and that has been a real source of strength to the family."

Meanwhile, Bolton captain Kevin Davies said that suggestions about the club withdrawing from the FA Cup because players were too upset to return to White Hart Lane were "irrelevant" as everybody was focused on Muamba's health.

Bolton's next Premier League game at Aston Villa on Tuesday has been postponed.

Blackburn Rovers manager Steve Kean also said the club would "do whatever we have to do", and would be happy for Saturday's scheduled Premier League match against Bolton to be called off.

Muamba was born in Zaire, now Democratic Republic of Congo, and moved to England aged 11 as a refugee.

DR Congo FA president Omari Selemani said the midfielder had the support of "65 million" Congolese.

"On the behalf of the Congolese FA, all the Congolese people and myself included, we express our sympathy to Fabrice Muamba."

In the past the player has rejected attempts by the Congolese FA to call him up, choosing instead to play for England at youth level.

Medics spent six minutes trying to resuscitate Muamba on the pitch after he fell to the ground with no other players around him.

The score was 1-1 when the quarter-final was abandoned after 41 minutes.

It took medical staff two hours to get Muamba breathing again, and they gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation as well as trying to revive him with a defibrillator.

Both sets of supporters chanted Muamba's name as he was taken off the pitch on a stretcher.

Spurs manager Harry Redknapp said at the time: "All we are thinking about now is Fabrice and his family."

Referee Howard Webb called the visibly-shaken players off the field after consulting with Coyle and Redknapp and the game was abandoned.

Van der Vaart Describes Collapse

Fabrice Muamba collapsing left players panicking, it was horrifying to watch, says Tottenham's Rafael van der Vaart

Tottenham's Rafael van der Vaart has described the moment Fabrice Muamba suffered a cardiac arrest during Saturday's FA Cup match against Bolton as "horrifying" and said players were panicked as they watched medical staff try to resuscitate the midfielder.

Van der Vaart was stood barely 10 metres away from Muamba when he collapsed and was seen praying for the midfielder on the White Hart Lane pitch while he received treatment.

Reflecting on what happened, Van der Vaart said: "It's almost incomprehensible what has happened. (It was) simply horrifying to see such a young player on the ground struggling for his life.

"I was standing about 10 metres from him but I didn't see him fall. It happened behind my back, but when I turned I immediately knew things weren't good.

"At that time all players on the field felt the panic as well. It was horrible to witness, it's the absolute low in my football career.

"I'd like to express my sincere support to the family, team-mates and everyone who is involved with Bolton Wanderers.

"Fabrice, we'll keep praying for you and I hope with all my heart that everything will be all right again."

Van der Vaart's Tottenham team-mate Benoît Assou-Ekotto has also spoken of his shock at the incident, which he said reminded him of the game in which fellow Cameroonian Marc-Vivien Foe died in 2003 after collapsing on the pitch during a game in France.

"Saturday was one of those days that will stay with me forever," Assou-Ekotto wrote in his Evening Standard column.

"When I saw him lying on the pitch at White Hart Lane, I was scared. Scared for him, scared for his family, his friends and all those people who know him and who care about him.

"I was also scared because he was just like me. He is young, supposedly fit – an athlete – who a few seconds ago was running up and down the same pitch as me. I had flashbacks of what had happened to my countryman, the late Marc-Vivien Foe.

"You want to stop these thoughts but the pictures keep coming into your head and I must say I was scared. Scared as I wondered how it could all just end like that for a young man? I could see the same questions in the eyes of my team-mates, the Bolton players, our bosses and their colleagues."

Muamba Faces Crucial 24 hrs Coyle

Bolton midfielder Fabrice Muamba faces a crucial 24 hours in his fight for life, manager Owen Coyle has said.

The 23-year-old remains critically ill after collapsing during an FA Cup quarter-final tie against Tottenham.

He is being treated in the intensive care unit of the heart attack centre at the London Chest Hospital and an update on his condition is to be released later on Sunday morning.

Coyle said: "It's very serious. There's no getting away from that."

He added: "God willing, he makes it through."

Medics spent six minutes trying to resuscitate the former England under-21 international on the field after he fell to the ground with no other players around him.

The score was 1-1 when the match was abandoned after 41 minutes.

Coyle said: "Fabrice is critically ill. The next 24 hours are going to be absolutely crucial.

"We've obviously been inundated with people wishing him well and we hope that if everybody can pray strongly tonight that Fabrice is able to recover."

The club and the hospital issued a joint statement at 2130 GMT on Saturday saying: "Bolton Wanderers can confirm that Fabrice Muamba has been admitted to the Heart Attack Centre at the London Chest Hospital where he is in a critically ill condition in intensive care.

"The club and hospital request that the media and public respect the family's privacy at this time."

Members of Muamba's family and his fiancee attended the hospital on Saturday night.

Medical staff gave mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to Muamba, who was born in Zaire (now Democratic Republic of Congo) but moved to England aged 11, and tried to revive him with a defibrillator.

In total, six medics were treating the player, who joined Wanderers from Birmingham in 2008 and has made 148 appearances for the club.

PLAYERS' MESSAGES ON TWITTER

"Praying for you Fab. Hope he's OK. Thoughts with him and his family. For all those asking, I know as much as you do. Waiting anxiously for updates from teammates. Fab is a fighter!" Bolton midfielder Stuart Holden 

"Pray for Fab. God willing he will pull through."Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe 

"All our hearts with Fabrice Muamba, one of my closest friends at Bolton. I'm shocked, wishing him a fast recovery." Wigan's former Bolton goalkeeper Ali Al Habsi 

"Hope Fabrice Muamba is OK. Praying for him and his family. Still in shock." Manchester United and England striker Wayne Rooney 

"Doesn't matter who you support. Doesn't matter if you aren't a football fan. Doesn't matter if you aren't religious. Pray for Fabrice Muamba."Tottenham defender Kyle Walker 

"I'm so sad about what happened to Fabrice Muamba today. Played with him for a couple of years. What a great guy. Always a smile on his face. Please Fabrice bring that smile back. My thoughts are with you and your lovely family!"Arsenal captain Robin van Persie 

Both sets of supporters chanted Muamba's name as he was taken off the pitch on a stretcher. ESPN, who were broadcasting the match, reported that he was not breathing as he was taken into the tunnel.

Referee Howard Webb called the visibly shaken players off the field after consulting with Coyle and Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp.

After Muamba was taken to hospital, the match was abandoned.

The former Arsenal midfielder was accompanied in the ambulance by Coyle and club captain Kevin Davies.

Football Focus presenter Dan Walker had an exchange of text messages with Davies on Saturday evening.

"Encouragingly, he [Davies] said Fabrice is showing real fight which is the best possible news," Walker said.

"Kevin says he is not giving up and he's digging in and showing a bit of battle.

"The fact they got him breathing again makes you marvel at the work these paramedics, doctors and nurses do."

Arsenal defender Johan Djourou, who played with Muamba at the Gunners, posted on Twitter that he had visited his friend in hospital.

"Just left the hospital. Love you so much man! Keep fighting. Everybody please pray for him he's an amazing man and friend."

BBC Radio 5 live's chief football reporter Ian Dennis, who was covering the game at White Hart Lane, witnessed medics rushing to aid Muamba.

"When the medical staff arrived his face was on the turf," he said.

"You could see them using a defibrillator and he was [electronically] charged on at least two occasions. Everyone could see Fabrice Muamba was fighting for his life.

"If he does pull through it will be down to the quick actions of the medics."

Soon after the incident, messages of support flooded in for the former Birmingham player.

Spurs' Rafael van der Vaart was one of those on the pitch when Muamba collapsed. He tweeted: "Terrible what happened with Muamba during the game. We're all praying for him."

England international Jack Wilshere, who played with Muamba at Bolton, wrote: "Hope Muamba is OK. Thoughts with him."

Middlesbrough defender Justin Hoyte, who played in the Arsenal youth team with Muamba, said: "I seriously hope my best friend in football is OK. Stay strong bro, please please stay strong. God is with you remember that."

A spokesman from Muamba's former club Birmingham said: "The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Fabrice and his family.

"He was a very popular member of the club during his time here and everyone at St Andrew's is shocked and saddened to see what happened."

Former Blues chairman David Gold Tweeted: "Fabrice Muamba is one of the nicest and most respectful young men I ever met in football. I'm thinking of you Fab, get well soon."