We rate the players in the game between Tottenham and Blackburn at White Hart Lane on Saturday.

By Abhishek Mehrotra

Gomes - 4.5

Did not have a single noteworthy save to make, but got caught in no-man's land when Christopher Samba headed the ball in.

Sebastien Bassong - 5.5

Played well with Michael Dawson to ensure that the goal was never really threatened. Picked out his forwards from deep inside his own half with some good passes.

Michael Dawson - 6

Did not have a great deal to do as most of Blackburn's attacks broke down in midfield. Made sure he nullified whatever little aerial threat Sam Allardyce's men presented. Was most conspicuous with some lovely diagonals to Gareth Bale.

Benoit Assou-Ekotto - 6

Linked up well with Gareth Bale on the left to make the once world class Michel Salgado look quite ordinary. Was occasionally troubled by Brett Emerton who managed to send in some good crosses for the Rovers.

Vedran Corluka - 6

Asssisted Niko Kranjcar well on the right side of midfield. However, the Croat's crosses could not quite match up to the quality provided by Gareth Bale on the other flank.

Wilson Palacios - 7

Was immense in midfield - cutting off some promising Blackburn play. Showed his versatility by picking out some absolutely lovely passes for both Niko Kranjcar and Luka Modric.

Luka Modric - 5.5

The midfielder was not as influential on proceedings as he has been in the past few games. Had a few shots on goal but they were wide off the mark.

Gareth Bale - 7.5

Was Tottenham's biggest threat in the first half. Skinned Michel Slagado on the left time and again with sheer pace and fed his strikers some lovely crosses. Got into got positions inside the box and should have had a goal for his efforts.

Niko Kranjcar - 6.5

His dead-ball delivery was excellent - and it was one corner from him that led to the Spurs' opener. Was on the periphery during open play - but grew in stature as the game went on - setting Defoe and Pavyluchenko through on goal with some precise passes.

Jermain Defoe - 6

Scored a typical poacher's goal to give Spurs the lead just before half time. However, Blackburn marked him well most of the time and the striker was forced to take snap shots at the opponents' goal.

Roman Pavlyuchenko - 6.5

Missed three scoring chances in the first half, failing to take advantage of some excellent play by Gareth Bale. The in-form striker redeemed himself in the second half with two goals. More than the goal itself however, it was the Russian's ability to get into good positions that impressed the most.

Subs

Peter Crouch - n.a

Eidur Gudjohnsen - n.a

Blackburn

Paul Robinson - n.a

Hobbled off with a calf problem in the first half.

Gael Givet - 3.5

Never looked confident as one of the pivots of the defence. Got caught out by some good crosses from Bale and Assou-Ekotto and was lucky not to concede an own goal.

Christopher Samba - 6.5

Blackburn's best defender of the day Samba made up for the shortcomings of both Givet and Pascal Chimbonda with some heoric last ditch defending. Also provided a bonus goal with a towering header to bring the score to 2-1 and give Big Sam's men some hope.

Pascal Chimbonda - 3.5

Was to blame for two Spurs' goals. Allowed Defoe to give him the slip for the first one and completely switched off to present Pavlyuchenko with a simple tap in which put the game to bed.

Michel Salgado - 2.5

The worst play on the pitch - at least in the first half. Was made to look pedestrian by Bale's blistering pace and allowed the midfieldder to get in behind him time and again. Dawson also caught him out with some floating long balls.

Morten Gamst Pedersen - 4.5

Could not get into good crossing positions - which really hurt Rovers since they are dependent on Pedersen for providing that extra bit of class on the left.

David Dunn - 5.5

Made some good runs beyond the last four and combined well with Emerton to give Blackburn some good attacking options. Did fade away later on in the game as Spurs upped their attacking tempo.

Steven Nonzi - 6

Was the most threatening player in the air and went close with a couple of headers. Could not keep his head in tight areas though and lost possession in promising positions.

Martin Olsson - 4

Went missing for large parts of the match, rarely offering anything by way of an attacking threat. Did his defensive duties creditbaly though  and played an important role in keeping both Kranjcar and Corluka quiet.

Brett Emerton - 5.5

Swung in some good crosses, but his lack of pace meant that Spurs' defenders could track back easily and crowd him out. Tended to dither with the ball when crossing at the first time of asking would have been a better option.

Nikola Kalinic - 6

Displayed good control at the top of the box and was unlucky to be denied a superb goal. Tried to play some neat little triangles but Spurs quality combined with Blackburn's lack of it cut out any fancy little moves.

Subs

Jason Brown - 6

Made some superb stretching saves in the first half to keep Blackburn in the game. Will be kicking himself over the second goal however - when he allowed a Pavlyuchenko strike to go straight through him.

Keith Andrews - 5

Did not have any impact on the game.

Franco Di Santo - 5.5

Was energetic in possession - and went close to scoring late on in the game.