His future was uncertain in the close season, but Tottenham Hotspur may have to rely on Darren Bent if they are to progress in the Uefa Cup. To the great relief of White Hart Lane, the forward’s header gave his team victory against Wisla Krakow last night, leaving the first-round tie delicately poised. Tottenham huffed and puffed against a stubborn Polish team, who will draw belief from a determined performance that they can overcome the deficit in the second leg on October 2.

Tottenham’s first victory this season, and only their fifth in 19 matches since the Carling Cup triumph in February, will not disguise some inadequacies of a team blending slowly after the upheavals over the summer. Nervous and tentative, they were slow to create meaningful chances until the game opened up in the second half, even if the return of Ledley King brought some stability to a defence that has looked jittery.

David Bentley gave Tottenham the lead midway through the first half, but 67 seconds later, they conceded a sloppy equaliser. Juande Ramos, the Tottenham head coach, was also left to reflect that another effort by Bent was incorrectly ruled out for offside.

“The win is important to gain confidence and calmness and help the team grow,” Ramos said. “Let’s hope that this will start a positive run, leading to better results. I would have liked more than a goal advantage and the tie is evenly balanced. Their goal gave us moments of doubt that we had to overcome.”

Switched from the centre to his favoured right flank for the first time, Bentley was outstanding. The winger’s inspiration and direct running was the foundation for Tottenham’s best opportunities. Regularly afforded too much space, his succession of swift, accurate deliveries will have caught the eye of Roman Pavlyuchenko, the tall Russia forward who was cup-tied.

In the opening minute, Bentley’s cross caused confusion in the Wisla defence. Minutes later, his corner was met by Jonathan Woodgate, who rose too early and headed weakly at Mariusz Pawelek. Bentley’s long pass then found Bent bearing down on goal, but the Wisla goalkeeper bravely cleared.

So it was no surprise that Bentley gave Tottenham the lead. Bent’s flick allowed Giovani dos Santos to run clear and feed Aaron Lennon. The England winger skipped down the left and pulled the ball back for Bentley to scoop the ball into the far corner.

Tottenham’s joy was short-lived. Ramos will not be happy that Didier Zokora and Gareth Bale made weak attempts to tackle in the build-up to Wisla’s equaliser a minute later. Rafal Boguski laid the ball to Pawel Brozek, whose first-time pass found Tomas Jirsak ten yards out and he clipped the ball over Heurelho Gomes. “There was a sort of a relaxation in the team and they took advantage,” Ramos said. “They equalised far too quickly.”

Wisla, the Polish champions in four of the past five years, were displaying confidence, adventure and composure to move the ball swiftly. They could have taken the lead when Boguski turned Woodgate, but his firm shot was parried by Gomes.

Tottenham regrouped and began the second half stronger. They should have taken the lead when Jermaine Jenas, at the hub of an eight-pass move, fed Bent, who slotted the ball in, but the goal was incorrectly ruled out for offside against the forward. As the tension grew, Radoslaw Sobolewski drilled a shot just wide and Mauro Cantoro snatched his attempt on goal, blazing over after a deflected pass fell into his path a few yards out.

Fraizer Campbell’s introduction on 57 minutes roused Tottenham and from his cross, Bent rose to head them into the lead, although Wisla claimed that the goalscorer fouled Cléber. Pushing for another goal, Bale’s drive was parried and cleared before Bent could pounce and King headed wide.

“We could have created a surprise, so we can be optimistic and we are waiting for the second leg,” Maciej Skorza, the Wisla coach, said.

Tottenham Hotspur (4-4-1-1): H Gomes - C Gunter (sub: J O'Hara, 56min), J Woodgate, L King, G Bale - D Bentley, J Jenas, D Zokora, A Lennon (sub: F Campbell, 56) - Giovani Dos Santos (sub: B Assou-Ekotto, 70) - D Bent. Substitutes not used: C Sánchez, T Huddlestone, Gilberto, M Dawson. Booked: O'Hara.

Wisla Krakow (4-2-3-1): M Pawelek - P Singlar, M Baszczynski, Cléber, J Díaz - R Sobolewski, M Cantoro - T Jirsak (sub: W Lobodzinski, 61), R Boguski (sub: P Malecki, 72), M Zienczuk - P Brozek (sub: A Niedzielan, 78). Substitutes not used: M Juszczyk, Marcelo, A Glowacki, A Barreto. Booked: Sobolewski, Malecki.

Referee: L Cardoso Cortez Batista (Portugal).