Tottenham beats AC Milan 1-0 at San Siro

MILAN (AP) - Peter Crouch's late goal gave Tottenham Hotspur a 1-0 win at Serie A leader AC Milan in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie on Tuesday.

Crouch scored with 10 minutes remaining after Aaron Lennon had broken clear from his own half.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic thought he scored an injury time equalizer, but his overhead kick was ruled out for a push on Spurs captain Michael Dawson.

The Milan players' frustration boiled over at the final whistle and Genaro Gattuso appeared to headbutt Tottenham assistant coach Joe Jordan - a former Milan player - before both sets of players began scuffling.

Milan captain Gattuso, who had earlier shoved Jordan during the match, was also booked in the 75th minute and will miss the return leg at White Hart Lane.

It was an unseemly end to a match in which Tottenham again impressed at the San Siro, having recovered from 4-0 down to 4-3 against Inter Milan in the group stage earlier in the season.

Crouch was picked up front, with Jermain Defoe on the bench, and Harry Redknapp had clearly set up his side to target Crouch's height as a way to trouble the Milan defense.

Tottenham trying to bring Beckham back to England

LONDON (AP) - David Beckham could be on his way back to England's Premier League - for a little while.

Tottenham, where Beckham trained as a schoolboy before signing for Manchester United, wants to sign the former England captain on loan from Los Angeles Galaxy until the Major League Soccer season starts in March.

Beckham has said he would like to return to the Premier League after more than seven years away and Spurs manager Harry Redknapp thinks the 35-year-old midfielder's experience could be invaluable for a team challenging for a second straight top-four finish and doing well in its Champions League season.

"He just said that he would like to come and play here at Tottenham," Redknapp said after Tottenham beat Fulham 1-0 on Saturday to stay fifth in the Premier League.

"I've left it to the people at the club. I've passed it on to them. They're talking to whoever they have to talk to at his club." Beckham spent the past two northern hemisphere winters in Italy on loan at AC Milan, while his Galaxy teammate Landon Donovan did the same last year at English club Everton. Beckham wants to join a European club on a short-term loan to boost his chances of being recalled to the England team. He made the last of his 115 international appearances against Belarus in October 2009 and missed last year's World Cup because of an Achilles injury at Milan.

Report: Spurs boss gets six-match ultimatum

LONDON: Tottenham manager Martin Jol has been given an ultimatum of six games to save his job after his side fell to a 3-1 loss at home to Arsenal at the weekend, according to press reports here yesterday.

Jol’s position has come under scrutiny as his side sit fourth from bottom with just one win from six games with speculation rife of a swoop for Sevilla’s Juande Ramos.

While Daniel Levy has apparently ruled out an immediate parting of the ways, even a revival from Spurs in the next month may not be enough to save Jol.

The Dutchman is adamant he is the man to help break into the 'big four’ and hit out at those who continue to undermine his position in the wake of the defeat by Arsenal on Saturday.

He said: “I’m not hurting inside. I will try to get the results and as long as the players show me the commitment they showed me again, there is no problem.

“People said in 2005 I was going to be out of a job but I am still here.

“So I think I will be here in six weeks. I feel there are two worlds here in London.

“There are you guys (journalists) and then there are the supporters who read your papers. It’s amazing, no?

“Although they read your papers, they’re still backing me. That’s a great feeling.

“I don’t think the board is a problem. I tell them all the time what’s wrong. We speak about players and talk about the team.” – AFP