West Brom slipped closer to the Premier League trap door after a Jermaine Jenas goal secured victory for Tottenham.

The midfielder coolly slotted home from 25 yards with his right foot after being found in space by Verdun Corluka and side-stepping Youssouf Mulumbu.

Marc-Antoine Fortune volleyed over from 10 yards for the visitors and later saw a deflected shot hit the post.

Shelton Martis then nodded wide from five yards and had a second header cleared off the line by Jermain Defoe.

The result was a huge disappointment for Albion manager Tony Mowbray, who made three changes to the side that beat Sunderland 3-0 last week.

Martis came in for the injured Abdoulaye Meite in defence while midfield duo Iglesias Borja Valero and Youssouf Mulumbu were promoted from the bench.

Valero had the first real chance of the game but the Spaniard scuffed his attempted shot after good work by Fortune down the right.

But for all their endeavour and neat passing, West Brom lacked the kind of incisive pass to really open up Spurs.

The home side also lacked sharpness against the most porous defence in the Premier League, with Roman Pavlyuchenko, recalled to the side after last weekend's 5-2 defeat by Manchester United, and Robbie Keane squandering opportunities which came their way.

The Russain international dragged a 20-yard free-kick wide, blazed over from 12 yards with just the keeper to beat and screwed a shot from the edge of the box off target.

Keane then kicked fresh air with the goal at his mercy while Aaron Lennon had a powerful shot easily turned away by Albion keeper Scott Carson.

But with half-time approaching, Corluka stepped in off the right wing and played a simple ball into Jenas who neatly transferred the ball from his left to right foot before slotting in.

Albion had come close to taking the lead themselves moments earlier when Fortune's 10-yard volley grazed the bar and he continued to threaten after the break, forcing Spurs keeper Heurelho Gomes to a low save at his near post.

The French striker went even closer with a shot which was deflected on to the post by Corluka, but as West Brom continued to strive for an equaliser, Lennon began to exploit gaps that appeared in their defence.

He forced a decent save out of Carson after a surging run from inside his own half and almost teed Keane up with a dangerous ball across the six-yard box.

Martis should have levelled for Albion but managed to nod a free header at the back post high and wide from just five yards.

Defoe was brought on for Pavlyuchenko to rapturous applause with 25 minutes remaining, but his first job was to help clear another Martis header off his own line with the help of a Gomes punch.

Gomes then reacted sharply to fist away Robert Koren's deflected shot, but in the closing stages it was Spurs who looked the more likely to add to their tally.

Defoe, who had already had an effort chalked off for offside, surged forward and played in Lennon, but while the winger's bobbling shot beat Carson, it came back off the post.

And moments later Jenas was denied a second by a smart save by Carson, low to his left, but Spurs kept their European ambitions on track.