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Deadly Defoe puts Spurs on cloud nine

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Jermain Defoe scored five as Tottenham Hotspur FC beat Wigan Athletic FC 9-1 to move into the Premier League's top four, and there were also wins for Stoke City FC and Blackburn Rovers FC.

Jermain Defoe (left) celebrates with Tom Huddlestone en route to his five-goal haul
Jermain Defoe (left) celebrates with Tom Huddlestone en route to his five-goal haul ©Getty Images

Jermain Defoe scored five as Tottenham Hotspur FC beat Wigan Athletic FC 9-1 to move into the Premier League's top four, while there were also victories for Stoke City FC and Blackburn Rovers FC.

One-way traffic
Defoe's England team-mate Peter Crouch got the ball rolling with a ninth-minute header, but it was the more diminutive member of Spurs's strike partnership who took centre stage. Defoe had already hit Chris Kirkland's crossbar by the time he converted Aaron Lennon's cross on 51 minutes and two more followed in the next seven minutes – either side of Paul Scharner's brief lifeline for Wigan – before Lennon got in on the act. Defoe added two more with clinical finishes, Kirkland's own goal made it eight and Niko Kranjčar completed the rout deep into added time. Harry Redknapp's side are now equal on points with third-placed north London rivals Arsenal FC after becoming the first team to notch nine in a Premier League match since Manchester United FC beat Ipswich Town FC 9-0 in 1995.

Fuller winner
Blackburn's triumph came in tamer fashion, David Dunn's strike on 32 minutes and a Sam Ricketts own goal on 73 earning them a 2-0 win at nearby neighbours Bolton Wanderers FC. Rovers moved into eleventh as a result, two places and three points adrift of Stoke, who survived Kevin-Prince Boateng's missed penalty in the first half to beat Portsmouth FC 1-0 courtesy of Ricardo Fuller's first league goal since 24 May.