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A debut strike from David Dunn from the penalty spot was the difference between the sides, as Blues held on in the second half despite some strong pressure from the visitors.
Steve Bruce had a few selection dilemnas prior to the game with various players vying for certain positions. Maik Taylor was preferred to Ian Bennett in goal, Darren Purse was chosen as Matthew Upson's cover ahead of Olivier Tebily in the heart of defence, Stephen Clemence edged Stan Lazaridis out of the starting eleven whilst Geoff Horsfield got the nod to partner Christophe Dugarry ahead of Stern John.
Blues started the game impressively, with Robbie Savage and Clemence giving the likes of Jamie Redknapp and Simon Davies no room in midfield. Horsfield was unlucky to be flagged offside after good work from Dugarry, before the Frenchman hit Kasey Keller's right-hand post with a deft flick from a Clemence free-kick with Savage screwing the rebound wide. Horsfield and Dugarry both threatened further, but Blues were unable to really test American International Keller.
Blues did get their breakthrough, however, after 35 minutes. Referee Rob Styles, who made his usual quota of baffling decisions throughout, awarded a penalty for an Anthony Gardner foul on Savage. Whilst the big Spurs centre-back certainly did pull Savage down, there was certainly some shirt-tugging from Savage too, though no one was going to argue. Dunn picked up the ball, and with a pat on the back from Savage wishing him luck - making a mockery of their alleged 'bust-up' at Burton over penalty-taking duties - duly stepped up and scored, despite Keller's best efforts.
Blues could have been 2-0 up on the stroke of time, but Dugarry wasted a glorious opportunity after being put through by Horsfield, and the home side had to settle for the one goal advantage going into the break after a fairly impressive first 45 minutes of the season.
If the first 45 minutes had been fairly impressive, however, the next 45 were pretty dreadful. Blues seemed clueless in the second half, and at no point did they retain possession of the ball over any periods of time, allowing Spurs to get a foothold in the game. Ex-Brighton striker Bobby Zamora replaced the ineffective Helder Postiga early on in the second half, and immediately offered more of a threat with his pace and physique.
As the pressure increased, so the chances started to come for the visitors, with Robbie Keane hitting the post after the Blues defence remained static after a Mariccio Taricco ball, whilst Zamora went close with a header and Taylor saved well from substitute Dean Marney. The introduction of Stern John and Paul Devlin for Dugarry and Horsfield did nothing to stem the Spurs flow as Blues really began to struggle. In injury-time, it appeared Spurs were finally going to get reward for their efforts when Zamora rose to meet a Davies cross unmarked in the centre of goal, but the England Under 21 International was off target with his header, and Blues collected the three points.
Certainly when it comes to the first game of the season, there's nothing better than getting off to a winning start, and that's what Blues have done. Their first half performance was more than acceptable, but the second half will have given some cause for concern in the way that they simply backed off Spurs and let them back into the game. In saying that though, nothing came of it in the end, and I have no doubt that the problems that did manifest themselves will be rectified over the coming weeks. A satisfactory start, however.
PLAYER RATINGS:
Taylor - Comfortable
Kenna - Cool and composed
Clapham - Sound defensively, but surprisingly poor distribution and crosses
Purse - Solid
Cunningham - Excellent
Johnson - Subdued
Savage - Usual tenacious self
Dunn - Unspectacular debut, but showed flashed of his class
Clemence - Good performance against his old club
Dugarry - Not at his best
Horsfield - Worked as hard as ever
SUBS
John - Lethargic
Devlin - A nuisance for Spurs
Tebily - Not sure he even touched the ball in his brief appearance
Blues: Taylor, Kenna, Cunningham, Purse, Clapham, Johnson, Savage (Tebily 90), Clemence, Dunn, Horsfield (John 69), Dugarry (Devlin 72). Subs Not Used: Lazaridis, Bennett.
Booked: Savage, Clemence, Dunn.
Tottenham: Keller, Carr, Bunjevcevic, Gardner, Doherty, Taricco (Marney 70), Ricketts, Davies, Redknapp, Keane, Postiga (Zamora 57). Subs not used: Sullivan, Acimovic, Kelly.
Booked: Gardner, Carr, Davies, Ricketts, Marney.
Attendance: 29,358.
Referee: R Styles (Hampshire).