Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas has told fans to get behind his team and stop creating a negative atmosphere at White Hart Lane.

Spurs made hard work of a 1-0 win over Hull City in the Premier League on Sunday with Roberto Soldado's 80th-minute penalty all that separated the sides.

Spaniard Soldado's third goal from the spot and sixth of the season moved Spurs into fourth in the table, but that didn't stop Villas-Boas from criticising home fans.

"We played in a very difficult atmosphere, very tense, very negative and we looked like the away team but we kept our cool," said Villas-Boas.

"We had to dig deep within ourselves because we weren't getting help from anybody, the stadium reflected this atmosphere, very tense and without a lot of support until the first goal.

"I'm particularly happy with the way the players fought hard against that anxiety and kept their cool to take the three points.

"I'm extremely happy with the crowd normally, fans for me represent the essence of football. The away support has been immense," Villas-Boas stressed.

"Sometimes at home it is difficult and it looks like it drags the ball in to our goal rather than our opponents goal."

Villas-Boas stressed: "I don't intend with this message to send them a warning, neither do I intend to hurt their feelings but this is something that is felt within the group.

"You need that help. We are great believers in emotion and motivation and that is always decisive when you play at home."

Hull manager Steve Bruce was even more frustrated, but it seemed the former Manchester United skipper only had referee Michael Oliver to blame for denying his side what would have been a deserved point.

Replays showed Jan Vertonghen's cross came off the foot of Ahmed Elmohamady before striking the midfielder in the arm, yet Oliver still awarded the decisive penalty which Soldado duly converted.

"It is an absolute joke decision," said Bruce. "It hits his leg for a start and then goes up and hits his arm, how do you give a penalty in that situation?

"We have more directives and meetings and all this nonsense, they (referees) are all getting assessed up in the stands but then they give decisions like that which just baffles me and I have to ask the question, would we have got it (the penalty)?

"He (Oliver) is going to go and see it and know it is a soft one and in my opinion it is not right, not for the stakes we are playing for.

"It is the same old thing. He's ballsed it up," added the Hull boss.

There was a worrying moment late in the game when Tottenham and England winger Andros Townsend plunged over an advertising hoarding and into the photographers' pit.

The 22-year-old returned with strapping on his wrist but Villas-Boas said he did not expect Townsend to have suffered a severe injury.