Spurs beaten at Boro

Tottenham suffered a miserable opening day of the season as Middlesbrough secured a 2-1 victory at the Riverside Stadium.

Defender David Wheater scored the first in the 71st minute after an Afonso Alves shot had come back off the underside of the crossbar and Mido, on for Alves, turned in a second with four minutes to go.

A late Robert Huth own goal was mere consolation for the Londoners.

After early half-chances at both ends, Wheater's ball from the right released Tuncay Sanli and the Turk got away from Benoit Assou-Ekotto, who had been left all alone at the back.

Tuncay played in the unmarked Alves, who seemed certain to score, but Assou-Ekotto somehow managed to deflect the shot over the top.

Wheater thought he had put his team ahead in the 32nd minute, but his headed goal was disallowed for tugging Michael Dawson's shirt as he fought to reach Stewart Downing's corner.

Juande Ramos opted to bring on Dimitar Berbatov in the 65th minute for Giovani Dos Santos, but Boro took the lead in the 71st minute when Downing crossed from the left and Alves got ahead of his marker at the near post.

His flick was tipped onto the underside of the bar by Gomes, but Wheater was on hand to finish the job from a yard out.

The four minutes from time French debutant Didier Digard smashed a low ball in from the right and Mido diverted it past Gomes to kill off his old club.

Spurs pulled one back in injury time when Huth headed into his own goal from a Bentley free-kick, but they could not conjure an equaliser.