Emmanuel Adebayor struck twice as Tottenham Hotspur recovered some of their sparkle to maintain their hold on fourth spot in the Barclays Premier League last night.

In the week their manager Harry Redknapp learned he would not succeed Fabio Capello as England manager, Spurs played more like the side they were before the speculation he would become national coach began.

Bolton's Nigel Reo-Coker cancelled out a stunning strike from Luka Modric at the Reebok Stadium but three goals in nine minutes from Spurs, one from Rafael van der Vaart and Adebayor's double, ended the game as a contest.

The victory took them within two points of third-placed Arsenal but left Owen Coyle's Bolton in deep relegation trouble.

It was an emotional night for the home side with Fabrice Muamba returning to the ground for the first time since suffering a cardiac arrest during the FA Cup tie between the same two teams in March. The midfielder accepted a standing ovation from all sides of the ground.

The home side's failure to make the most of a dominant spell after Reo-Coker's equaliser proved costly as they slipped to a defeat that leaves them in the bottom three.

Spurs took the lead with Modric's spectacular strike after 37 minutes but Bolton levelled with a well-worked equaliser in the 51st minute. Kevin Davies headed on Boyata's throw-in to Ngog and his backheel rolled perfectly for Reo-Coker, who fired a low shot past Brad Friedel.

The goal lifted the crowd and Bolton upped the tempobut they paid for their failure to make the most of that spell as Spurs launched two quick counterattacks to score two goals in as many minutes.

Bale first stretched the defence and Van der Vaart finished brilliantly as the Welshman slid an inviting ball into his path. Barely seconds later, Lennon got behind the defence as he raced on to a long ball from Modric and squared for Adebayor to tap home.

Bolton briefly rallied but the game was put beyond their reach when Bale sent Adebayor clear and the on-loan Manchester City striker casually rounded Bogdan to score his second and Spurs' fourth goal.