Tottenham vs Newcastle: Alan Pardew looking to build on unlikely win over Spurs as he admits Magpies 'earned' victory

Pardew saw the pressure on him eased thanks to a 2-1 victory at White Hart Lane

Alan Pardew celebrates victory over Tottenham (Getty Images)

Under-fire Newcastle manager Alan Pardew hopes the 2-1 comeback win at Tottenham will kick-start their season.

It has been an unpleasant start to the campaign for all involved with the Tynesiders, with poor results ratcheting up the pressure on their already unpopular manager.

Things are at last beginning to look up for the club, though, having followed up last weekend's maiden win of the campaign against Leicester with a first away victory.

Few expected United to triumph when they fell behind to Emmanuel Adebayor's header in a one-sided first-half on Sunday, yet they responded impressively after the break to secure a win thanks to efforts from substitute Sammy Ameobi and full debutant Ayoze Perez.

The victory propelled Newcastle out of the relegation zone, which in itself brings a renewed sense of confidence to Pardew's squad.

"Hopefully [we can build on this]," the Newcastle manager said. "I think we've been tight in games.

"There's possibly been a couple of games we could have won, but the Premier League is a tough league and you really have to earn a win. We are all finding that out this year.

"Every game I've seen has been very, very competitive except for just a few.

"It's important the team has a real strong belief in what they're doing.

"But we find ourselves out of the relegation zone and that is a massive relief for this football club, because the spotlight was very much on us.

"The pressure effects everybody, not just the players playing but our staff and everybody connected with the football club. In a way, that has been a great victory."

The win moves United within a point of Tottenham, who have just 11 to their name after nine matches.

It is hardly the start Mauricio Pochettino wanted to his reign, but the Spurs head coach remains philosophical.

"I am not concerned because we know that we have a lot of time," he said. "My target is to improve every day.

"We have improved our physical condition, we have improved our tactical condition now our challenge is to improve our mentality and create a winning mentality and try to cut out the mistakes we showed at the start of the second half."

Pardew and John Carver celebrate a Newcastle goal as Pochettino looks on in despair (Getty Images)

This is not the first time Pochettino has bemoaned his players' mentality and this time it undid what he called their best half of their season.

"It is not something where you can analyse the action, sort the tactical situation and move the players," the former Argentina international said.

"With mentality, we need to work hard. It is not easy. We need to be more strong, like a team. This is our challenge.

"We need to speak, we need to create a different situation on the training ground and work.

"We know how but always you need to spend time to work in this area. It is not the same as in physical or tactical situations. It is a different area."

PA