Spurs must find a quick way to heal their final heartache

After turning his nose up at the UEFA Cup because he felt it could affect Tottenham's chances of avoiding relegation, Harry Redknapp must be worried that this shattering defeat at Wembley could do far greater damage to the club's hopes of Premier League survival.

Tottenham matched Manchester United for 120 minutes, only to see their chances of retaining the Carling Cup disappear when Jamie O'Hara and David Bentley lost their nerve in the penalty shoot-out.

When a club are defeated and deflated under such circumstances, the wounds can take some time to heal. Tottenham cannot afford to let this happen.

On Wednesday, Spurs face Middlesbrough, who are just two points below them in the table, at White Hart Lane in one of their most important matches of the season. Three days later, Redknapp's team travel to the Stadium of Light to take on Sunderland.

Win those two matches and Spurs will have an excellent chance of preserving their place in the top tier, with Redknapp believing that 10 more points – Spurs have 28 – should be enough. Lose them and the prospect of Championship football next season becomes horribly real once again.

Events at Wembley have made Spurs' task more difficult. As well as the psychological scars inflicted by the result, Redknapp's squad will be depleted on Wednesday due to injuries.

After playing the whole game, Ledley King will almost certainly miss out against Boro as his ongoing knee problems mean he can play only once a week. Jonathan Woodgate failed a fitness test on an Achilles injury before kick-off, while Michael Dawson and Aaron Lennon picked up knocks during the match.

Yet for all Redknapp's worries, there can be no better time for a group of players who have flattered to deceive for too long to start justifying their high salaries and elevated reputations.

After proving they could live with a formidable United team – of their best players, only Edwin van der Sar, Michael Carrick, Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Rafael da Silva were not involved in the final – Spurs must set their sights higher than mere survival over the remaining 12 games of their season.

Spurs fans could be proud of their team after this performance but they will be optimistic about next season only if the players display such energy and commitment in every game.

Lennon was a thorn in Patrice Evra's side all afternoon but what was particularly striking about the winger's display was his willingness to hustle Evra when the left-back broke forward. The former Leeds United man must, however, show this diligence every week, not only on the big stage.

Midfielder Jermaine Jenas hit the nail on the head when he said: "We showed a lot of courage and effort and if we put that in between now and the end of the season, we will climb the table.

"It was a strong performance and we can take pride from it but we haven't got time to think about it. Regardless of whether we had won or lost, we have an important game on Wednesday, which we have to focus on.

"We have to recover as well as we can and ensure we're ready for Boro."

Spurs could have been celebrating for the second year in succession had Lennon or Darren Bent taken the chances. Luka Modric cleverly allowed Benoit Assou-Ekotto's cross to run through to Lennon in the 71st minute but Spurs were denied by a smart save by Ben Foster. And after Rio Ferdinand had blocked a low drive from Modric five minutes from the end of extra-time, Foster kept out Bent's follow-up.

But Spurs rode their luck during normal time when United should have been awarded a penalty after Ledley King's trip on Cristiano Ronaldo. Instead, the United winger was booked for diving.

Ronaldo also hit the post in stoppage time at the end of the first 90 minutes and Nani put the rebound wide of an open goal.

The miss did not prove costly, though, as substitute Ryan Giggs, Carlos Tevez, Ronaldo and Anderson, another replacement, all scored in the shoot-out to clinch United's second trophy of the season, following their Club World Cup triumph in December. O'Hara's spot-kick was saved by Foster and although Vedran Corluka scored Spurs' second, Bentley shot well wide to allow Anderson to send Heurelho Gomes the wrong way and leave Spurs in despair.

O'Hara was in tears after being left out of the squad for last season's final and there was more Wembley disappointment for the midfielder with his error from 12 yards.

Having faced United three times this season, Redknapp can reflect that, in terms of footballing ability, his own players are not as far behind United's as the League table would suggest.

What they must now do in every game is copy the dedication and application displayed by Sir Alex Ferguson's team. Spurs' top-flight status depends on it.