Villas-Boas was at pains to point out the similarities between Bale and Ronaldo during the week, and the Welshman put in a performance the Portuguese would have been proud of today.

Bale beat Tim Krul with a 25-yard free kick to open the scoring for the Londoners and then sealed the win with a superb breakaway goal that ended with him slotting the ball between the Newcastle goalkeeper’s legs.

“It was a massive game today. It was just important to come back and put pressure on the teams above us,” Bale told Sky Sports 1. “I am enjoying my football at the moment and that’s the most important thing. I’m just going to keep my head down and be focused.”

Newcastle dominated large parts of the game but Bale, like he has done so many times this season, swung the game in Spurs’ favour.

Bale was employed through the middle for large parts Saturday, which Villas-Boas believes is helping the midfielder make an even greater impact.

“Today we started where he finished the second half against West Brom (last weekend),” Villas-Boas said. “We gave him the same freedom. When a player feels good about the position he enjoys it more.”

The 23-year-old, who scored the decisive goals in Tottenham’s last two matches, now has 19 goals for club and country this season. Only the athletic brilliance of Krul prevented him from scoring a hat trick.

Newcastle’s goal came from Yoan Gouffran, who was later carried off on a stretcher with a serious-looking leg injury.

The win stretched Tottenham’s unbeaten Premier League run to 10 matches and put the north London club into third temporarily until Chelsea beat Wigan later Saturday.

Villas-Boas and Newcastle manager Alan Pardew fell out last season, but there was a strong sense of bonhomie as they embraced on the touchline before kickoff.

Bale was in no mood to show the visitors the same love. Just 70 seconds had elapsed when he burst down the left after a clever one-two with Lewis Holtby, but Davide Santon cut the Welshman’s cross out before Clint Dempsey could convert.

Three minutes later and Spurs had the lead. Fabricio Coloccini clattered into Dempsey 25 yards out and Bale stepped up to deliver a Ronaldo-esque free kick that dipped over the wall past a diving Krul.

Spurs dominated the rest of the opening quarter with some scintillating attacking football.

Mousa Dembele penetrated the box and rolled the ball back to Holtby, who came within inches of scoring his first goal for the club.

Thereafter Newcastle came back in to the game. Lloris saved from a Gouffran curler and Cisse directed a free diving header just wide of his compatriot’s goal.

Holtby momentarily raised the hopes of the home crowd, but Newcastle remained on top and the seemingly inevitable equalizer came with 24 minutes gone.

Sissoko galloped down the right on a Newcastle counter and pulled the ball back to Gouffran, who beat Lloris via a deflection from the diving Michael Dawson.

Spurs had two penalty appeals turned down. The first — when Aaron Lennon’s shot struck Santon’s arm — looked credible, but the second — when Bale’s volley brushed Mathieu Debuchy’s shoulder — was not.

Gutierrez whipped a cross in to the box to find Yohan Cabaye, but the Frenchman miscontrolled and Lloris came to the rescue.

Tottenham failed to up its performance straight after the break.

The game came to a pause for seven minutes as Gouffran received treatment for what looked like a serious injury. Kyle Walker clipped the forward’s right shin on the halfway line and he needed oxygen before being carried off on a stretcher. He was then taken to hospital for an X-ray.

“His shinbone looks sore. It’s fingers crossed,” Pardew said. “We don’t want to lose him, he’s only just come to the club.”

Bale looked to be Tottenham’s best hope of finding a winner. The Welshman, who fired his country to victory over Austria in midweek, picked the ball off Lennon and fired a low cross in to the box but it was cut out before Dempsey could score.

Bale came forward again, charging at the defense before firing a powerful shot that Taylor blocked bravely.

Taylor went from hero to villain moments later, however, as his mix-up with Coloccini allowed Bale to race through the Toon defense and fire between the legs of Krul to make it 2-1.

Caulker had a chance to seal the win moments later with a free header when Krul went walkabout, but the defender nodded wide.

Only Krul’s fingertips prevented the Welshman from adding a third after he raced through from a long punt downfield before firing a powerful volley at goal.

“He is definitely a great keeper,” Bale said. “I was disappointed with the goal I missed on my right foot. I’ll have to work on that.”

Cabaye put in a terrible tackle on Dembele, stamping on the Belgian’s ankle in a late attempt to win the ball. Spurs’ players demanded a red card, but Phil Dowd issued just a yellow.

Newcastle threatened to equalize in the second of seven added minutes through substitute Shola Ameobi, but Lloris saved well to deny the striker.

Krul’s acrobatics denied Bale his hat trick twice in added time, but the winger did not mind. He had already done enough damage to see off the Toon.

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Chelsea officials met the 27-year-old’s representatives on Sunday night and the deal on the table reportedly did not come close to meeting the point where he would consider leaving St James’ Park.

According to the Daily Mail, Ba earns £20,000 per week plus £20,000 in appearance fees and hoped to double that figure with his new contract, a prospect at which Chelsea balked.

However, while the Ba camp has indicated that the Senegal international does not now expect to be playing his football at Stamford Bridge next month, it is likely that the impasse represents only the initial skirmish in a battle which could run and run.

The Blues are among a series of clubs to have been linked with the former West Ham frontman, who scored his 12th and 13th goals of the season at Arsenal on Saturday, with the £7million release-clause ($11.3 million) in his contract due to become active once again on Jan. 1.

The Daily Mail is reporting that Ba would receive £2million ($3.2 million) himself from the buyout.

However, as yet, the Magpies insist they are yet to receive a bid that would trigger that clause.

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew is growing increasingly weary of the Ba saga, saying Monday he feels “sorry” for Ba because he feels he’s getting bad advice.

“In some respects, I feel a little bit sorry for Demba as well because I think people who are representing him are not actually representing him,” he said. “There are people out there who are saying this who are not actually involved or want to be involved, and that’s the sort of world we are in.

“The contract is what it is, we are all aware of that, and for me as the manager I need it resolved as quickly as possible. That’s the best situation for our fans and for the club.”

Newcastle have spent recent months attempting to negotiate a new contract with Ba which would remove the clause and that remains on the table.

However, Pardew insisted it would not do so indefinitely.

“The situation with that is that it’s getting close to the point where we say ‘no more’, but the offer is still there,” he said.

The deal Ba signed when he joined Newcastle during the summer of 2011 was intensely complicated as a result of the medical condition of his knee, and they have spent recent months attempting to renegotiate it.

However, the two sides have been unable to reach agreement and with the player’s network of representatives clearly active behind the scenes, the waters are becoming increasingly muddied by the day.

What is clear is that any deal would cost significantly more than £7million ($11.3 million) when he signs after and agent fees, as well as a lucrative wage packet, are taken into consideration.

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