When José Mourinho talked about Manchester United having a tough run-in, this was one of the fixtures that he would have marked down as problematic for the league leaders. So the Chelsea manager will not have enjoyed the sight of Sir Alex Ferguson’s team running out such overwhelming victors at White Hart Lane that they could put John O’Shea in goal for the last ten minutes and laugh while they were at it.

It was a hugely impressive, emphatic response to Chelsea raising their game, as the defending champions undoubtedly have done in the past couple of Barclays Premiership matches. United must still go to Anfield and Stamford Bridge, but this was the sort of joyful triumph that will put them in good heart for any sort of road trip. A six-point gap is not much, but what was notable here is that United played like champions.

They were enjoying themselves so much that there was almost a surfeit of confidence by the end and Rio Ferdinand sloppily rolled a back-pass straight to Robbie Keane. Even then O’Shea, clad in goalkeeper’s green after Edwin van der Sar had broken his nose, came charging out of his box to make the tackle. “I have asked Edwin if he gets a clean-sheet bonus,” O’Shea said, “because I want half of that.”

It had not always been quite so easy for United and it took a contentious penalty to set them on their happy way. Inevitably, Cristiano Ronaldo was in the thick of the controversy, the winger tumbling to the floor shortly before half-time.

Indisputable was the fact that Steed Malbranque had stuck out his leg to make a challenge and then thought better of it. Less clear was whether there had been any contact, but Ronaldo was certainly not trying to keep his feet on the ground.

Replays on the giant screens at half-time appeared to damn the winger — and, after all, it would not be the first time — but the eventual margin of victory had taken some of the heat out of the debate by the time that Martin Jol faced the media. The Tottenham Hotspur head coach had too many other concerns to worry if Ronaldo had dived or, in football parlance, “accepted the opportunity”.

The Portugal international thumped the spot-kick past Paul Robinson — it is not the first time he has done that, either — for his fifteenth goal of the campaign on the eve of his 22nd birthday.

There could easily have been one penalty each by the time that Ronaldo threw himself to the floor. Anthony Gardner had felled Henrik Larsson while, at the other end, Gary Neville wrapped his arms around Pascal Chimbonda.

Mark Clattenburg, the referee, saw neither and there was a spell before half-time when the game appeared to be carrying on without him. Paul Scholes somehow escaped without a booking for several scything tackles, although there was no mistaking Wayne Rooney’s red mist that brought a yellow card. He will be suspended for the visit of Reading in the FA Cup — even the bans are playing into United’s hands.

There was bite in their tackling but United were accused by their manager at half-time of being ponderous. “The pace was too slow and we didn’t play with the usual width,” he said, although they had never looked in danger. Patrice Evra was effectively shackling Aaron Lennon, while Nemanja Vidic continues to offer a menacing presence alongside Ferdinand.

It was simply a matter of United finding their own game and they did so to great effect in the second half. First Michael Carrick picked out Vidic with an inswinging corner. Michael Dawson was one of several Spurs players in the vicinity but, at set-pieces, few are the equal of the Serbia centre half.

That was in the 48th minute and it was 3-0 by the 54th. Ronaldo drove to the byline and cut the ball across the goalmouth for Scholes to turn in from close range. Ryan Giggs wrapped things up when Louis Saha put him through with a deft pass. The Wales winger clipped his shot over Robinson and what Mourinho had hoped might be a competitive, tight draw had turned into a rout.

So much so that United became casual in the latter stages, although they still managed to get away with losing their goalkeeper and being reduced to ten men.

Ferguson had already made three substitutions when Van der Sar came off worse after being challenged by Keane. First Ferdinand pulled on the shirt but, having decided that O’Shea was more dispensable, the Ireland player grabbed the gloves.

“We’ll call him The Cat,” Ferguson joked, although he might not have been laughing if his team had conceded. “Having that zero against your name is what it is about and it is going to be very important in the run-in,” he said. United are ahead, and expect to stay there on this form, but things could yet be that tight.