Tottenham 0 Middlesbrough 0
Glenn Hoddle reckons David Pleat should be given the Tottenham manager's job on a permanent basis because he is impossible to work with as director of football.
After Pleat extended his unbeaten run as caretaker manager to six games, the White Hart Lane board might just consider taking Hoddle's jibe seriously.
Spurs kept their fifth clean sheet since Pleat succeeded Hoddle last month, but it was hardly pretty as they failed to find a way past a resolute Middlesbrough defence.
In fact, it was Boro who had the best chance of the game, but goalkeeper Kasey Keller made an excellent flying save to keep out Bolo Zenden's fierce shot from 20 yards after 54 minutes.
Boro put a total of eight goals past Spurs in the two meetings last season and started confidently, with Gaizka Mendieta firing a shot wide after two minutes.
Spurs hit back with three successive corners after four minutes and a dangerous cross from Paul Konchesky on the left was only just knocked away from Dean Richards by the lunge of goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer.
Richards mis-judged the flight of the ball after eight minutes and allowed Malcolm Christie to get in behind him, but the striker snatched at his shot from 20 yards and it was well wide.
It was end-to-end stuff and Konchesky did well on the left again after 13 minutes when he drilled in a low cross aimed at Gus Poyet. It took a fine saving tackle from Colin Cooper on the edge of the six-yard box to clear the danger.
Konchesky is on loan from Charlton in a swap deal which took Chris Perry the other way, and he did his best to impress the Spurs fans with a fierce drive from 25 yards after 16 minutes which flashed past the far post.
Boro launched a good counter-attack when Szilard Nemeth raced through the middle but when the ball came in for George Boateng he scooped his effort over the bar.
The first half tailed off until injury-time when Nemeth tried his luck from 30 yards and Keller had to tip the ball over his bar.
After the break, there was little to warm the fans until the best chance of the game fell to Zenden after 54 minutes.
Mendieta fed the Dutch winger - on loan from Chelsea - on the left edge of the box and his fierce drive was brilliantly turned round his right hand post by Keller.
Christie missed a golden chance to open the scoring after 58 minutes, completely missing a low cross from Boateng with just Keller to beat from six yards.
There was one last-gasp Middlesbrough chance in the final minute when substitute Rohan Ricketts fed Postiga, but he hit a tame shot straight at Schwarzer.
Both sets of fans were left frustrated at the lack of quality in front of goal and in the end neither side did enough to merit taking all three points.
PA