Alan Pardew 'admires' Andre Villas-Boas

Alan Pardew has praised Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas as he prepares his Newcastle United team for the trip to White Hart Lane on Saturday.

The 51-year-old revealed his "admiration" for the Portuguese coach, who he believes has done well since arriving at the club in the summer.

"He's done a good job there," said Pardew. "He's gone quietly about his business, as he does.

"He's a very thorough coach and I've got a lot of admiration for him. And I think they've got some fantastic players.

"Gareth Bale is definitely in that top five or six players in the world right now so we've got some difficult players to contain."

The Magpies lost 5-0 at White Hart Lane last season.