Spurs party after amazing revival but Jol still on brink

Martin Jol described it as an unforgettable evening, but only time will tell whether Tottenham Hotspur's manager will remember last night's remarkable 4-4 draw with Aston Villa at White Hart Lane as a glorious celebration of the club's best traditions or as a final nail in his own coffin.

The match marked Tottenham's 125th anniversary, but with an array of former White Hart Lane heroes watching from the stands the occasion appeared to be descending into farce when Aston Villa took a 4-1 lead early in the second half. At that point Jol's own future at the club, which has been a source of speculation all season, seemed on a knife-edge, but four goals in the last 22 minutes salvaged a point and spared the manager's blushes.

Whether the draw will be enough to keep Jol in his job is another matter. Tottenham are still in the relegation zone and with away games to follow against Liverpool and Newcastle United the challenge is not going to get any easier.

"I don't want to even think what it would have been like to have lost on a night like this, the club's 125th anniversary and with all the legends here," Jol said afterwards. "That was a night about football. I don't want to talk about negative things. Before the game I told the team it wasn't about the League or results, it was about giving the supporters a celebration. We spoiled that, but I'm happy that in the end the fans had their celebration. I don't think they will ever forget this match.

"In the second half we said we had to play for the shirt and do everything we possibly could. I think we did that, though at 4-1 down it really felt horrible, to say the least.

"When we got back to 4-2 I started to believe that we might do something. We came back from the death and that was a big positive positive. I don't think I've ver been involved in a game like this. We could have won it at the end."

Jol blamed a lack of communication among his young defenders and a lack of leadership on the pitch. "Of the last nine goals we've conceded, six have been from set pieces," he said. "We've tried to do something about it. If there's no leadership, that's a problem."

Asked if he felt his position was under threat, Jol said: "I don't know. It's not up to me." As to whether the game made him wonder more about his future, Jol said: "I've thought about my future for the last six weeks so that's nothing new."

After Younes Kaboul's injury-time equaliser the Tottenham players raced to the touchline to celebrate with Jol. "It's not about me but it was nice to celebrate with them," he said.

Martin O'Neill was delighted with his own team's performance. "Crap game, wasn't it?" the Villa manager smiled. "It was excellent stuff and we contributed a lot."

O'Neill claimed that Jermain Defoe had been offside "15 times" before Kaboul's equaliser. "We should have had a penalty just after half-time," he added, referring to Paul Robinson's challenge on Gabriel Agbonlahor.

At least Jol has not lost his sense of humour. Villa supporters, mocking the hosts' celebrations, sang "Happy birthday, dear Tottenham" after their third goal. "When their supporters sang that it was the only time I had a smile on my face," Jol said. "That was a great bit of British humour."