Two men were arrested after an assistant referee was struck by a flare thrown from the stands during Tottenham Hotspur's 2-0 Premier League win at Aston Villa on Sunday.

Spurs had just taken a 31st-minute lead on a goal by Andros Townsend at Villa Park when a canister trailing black smoke was lobbed towards the playing surface, apparently from the away supporters' section.

It hit assistant referee David Bryan on the back, causing him to stumble forwards, but after a brief stoppage in play while referee Phil Dowd spoke to his colleague, the game continued.