There was a huge sense of relief inside Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday afternoon when referee Chris Kavanagh finally sounded the full-time whistle.
Heading into the showdown against Aston Villa in desperate need of a win after three straight Premier League defeats, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Matt Targett's own goal ensured Tottenham got back to winning ways.
Ollie Watkins' equaliser may have seen heads drop going on the past few results but Spurs immediately fought back and netted the crucial winner four minutes later.
Nuno Espirito Santo's side may have only won by a single goal but they had plenty of chances throughout to put the game to bed long before the fifth and final minute of stoppage time.
A much-needed victory ahead of what could have been an extremely long and frustrating international break for the head coach and his squad, Spurs will now be looking to kick on when they return to Premier League action against Newcastle United later this month.
What is also going to help Espirito Santo build a winning team is that he will have the likes of Cristian Romero, Davinson Sanchez, Emerson Royal and Giovani Lo Celso available for selection for the trip to St James' Park despite the fact they will be jetting off to South America for World Cup qualifiers.
Previously losing Sanchez, Romero and Lo Celso for ten days in September as they headed to Croatia for a training camp rather than undertaking a quarantine period in a UK hotel, all will be allowed to train and play upon their return while isolating at club facilities providing they are fully jabbed.
Romero and Emerson started Sunday's win over Aston Villa and it could be the start of both getting a regular run in the team going forward.
Having to bide his time on the bench in the Premier League thus far, the former has now started two of the last three league fixtures alongside Eric Dier at centre-back.
Emerson, on the other hand, has started in three of his four league games since joining Spurs after Japhet Tanganga missed out on right-back selection at home to Villa.
Both looked right at home in Tottenham's backline on Sunday afternoon, with Emerson in particular catching the eye with a strong showing down the right flank.
On the end of a big tackle from Villa youngster Jacob Ramsey early on, the 22-year-old grew into the game as it wore on and created problems for Dean Smith's side at times with his forward runs.
In the right place towards the end of the first half as he denied Targett just as he was about to close in on Hugo Lloris, the summer signing then had an effort cleared off the line not long after the restart before later teeing up Son Heung-min with a lovely cross to the back post.
The new man showcased exactly why he was brought to the club by Fabio Paratici with a very promising display and the hope is now that he will now improve and get even better.
Despite the positives from the ex-Barcelona man's display, Espirito Santo did highlight areas that the right-back does need to improve on.
"I think we have to be very patient with all the players," he told football.london. "I honestly think he [Emerson] has to improve. He had a good game. He was stable, especially in the way that he controlled the width.
"He was really good going forward. I think he had moments when he should have decided better when he was in the box, but not only Emerson, I think all the team, it was important for us.
"Today was very important for us, all the boys, the fans and the way the team played, I think we should be proud."
Romero also had an impact on proceedings with plenty of tackles and interceptions in and around the box, most notably the one which led to the break for Hojbjerg's opener after 27 minutes.
However, his late lung on Ramsey midway through the second half left him out of position and Villa capitalised as Watkins converted Targett's low cross from the left.
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Following lots of promising signs from Romero in his short time on the pitch since his move from Atalanta, the Argentine can now push on and become a Spurs regular under Espirito Santo once the latest international break comes to an end.
Given how the past two seasons have panned out with Spurs missing out on a top-four finish as a result of their mixed form, many supporters pointed to the absence of new signings in the head coach's XI to take on Arsenal after what was seen as a pivotal summer for the club under Paratici.
Signing for the long term as well as the here and now, the Italian's masterplan can finally be put into practice following the inclusion of both Emerson and Romero in the Tottenham defence by Espirito Santo.
Clearly an area of the pitch that needed addressing ahead of the season, Sunday's victory over Aston Villa could be the start of a new look Tottenham defence with the two new arrivals more than playing their part along the way.
