Tottenham Hotspur picked up a hard earned victory against Middlesbrough in Saturday's evening kick-off to keep pace with Chelsea's victory over Arsenal earlier in the day.
Mauricio Pochettino's side found it tough to break down Boro across the ninety minutes and required a second half penalty to see off Aitor Karanka's side. Still, three points are three points and Spurs appear to be the last team standing in terms of being close enough to Chelsea to still mount a title challenge.
It was massively important the Spurs picked up victory given they dropped points mid-week and fans will be hoping they can now go on an extended winning run and do everything they can to try and somehow peg Chelsea back.
Middlesbrough will have regrets they couldn't pick up a point, so close to holding Spurs to a draw with only one lapse in concentration denying them a result to bring back to the North East.
These are the FIVE pictures that summed up all the action...
Valdes the villain
Victor Valdes put in a solid performance for his side across the 90 minutes but his confrontation with Dele Alli threatened to overspill into a more serious matter that could have seen both players receive harsh punishment from the referee.
There were perhaps a bit of the dark arts being undertaken by the Spanish goalkeeper who will have known fine well that Dele Alli has a fairly short temper.
Both players kept their cool in the end and it didn't mar the occasion but targeting Dele Alli did highlight just how much of a threat the opposition now see the 20 year old.
A clear penalty
There were no doubts about Mark Clattenburg's decision to award Spurs a penalty in the second half after Son Heung-min was brought down in the box. Spurs had been huffing and puffing all evening prior to this and at times looked like they would never create the golden chance required to get ahead.
It wasn't the most glamorous of wins but it'll do and Spurs fans have the Korean attacker to thank for bamboozling the Middlesbrough defence enough to draw a foul inside the area.
Calm Kane
Penalties aren't guaranteed goals of course and Harry Kane showed the composure needed to stick the ball past Valdes to give the Lilywhites the lead.
It was Harry Kane's 16th goal of the season for Spurs in all competitions, total proving he is one of the most lethal strikers in the entire division.
It's that kind of form that gives Spurs hope they can keep picking up wins in the weeks to come as they fight on three fronts in the deep end of the campaign.
Tough Boro
Aitor Karanka inspired his side to produce a dogged display at White Hart Lane, getting his tactics mostly spot on and making sure his substitutions had a positive impact on the game for Boro.
They came mighty close to securing a vital point and can take many positives from the match despite now having won only one of their last ten matches.
It doesn't get much easier for them next week as they face in-form Everton at the Riverside Stadium. They'll require a similarly impressive defensive performance to fend off the Toffess, who stuck six goals past Bournemouth at Goodison on Saturday.
A vital win
It may have not been the prettiest football on offer, or the most exciting evening of action but in the end all that Spurs fans will care about is the three points.
The likes of Dele Alli looked fairly off the boil but you know what they say about teams who can win ugly. It's these sort of three points that stand them in good stead to potential have their highest finish in the top-flight since 1963, when they last finished second in the table.