Spurs vs West Ham: Match Report

When the draws for the League Cup quarters were made, Spurs and West Ham had quite contrasting atmospheres.

We had barely scraped past Burnley with a Lucas Moura header giving us a dour 1-0 win, while West Ham remarkably overcame reigning champions Manchester City, handing them their first defeat in the competition in 4 years. Tottenham were stagnant under Nuno, whilst the Hammers were flying high under Moyes: having an amazing Europa League campaign, earning victories over Liverpool and us. Antonio was bagging goals and assists left, right, and centre, and our striker was struggling for form.

By last evening though, much had changed. Conte coming in rejuvenated our squad, while West Ham have seen a slump in form. Just 7 goals and 2 wins in their previous seven outings have cast doubts on their European ambitions, and the loss of their first choice CBs in Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna made matters worse. On the other hand, Spurs are yet to lose under the Italian gaffer with the exception of a freak result against Mura. A well-fought draw against Liverpool showed us how much progress has been made since the weekly batterings we had under Nuno. Despite this, Tottenham against West Ham is always a spicy and unpredictable encounter. Spurs hadn’t won against their London rivals in their last 4 outings, which included a pulsating 3-3 draw at home in October 2020, where Gareth Bale’s long-awaited return was overshadowed by an embarrassing bottling.

Hojbjerg's return gave us much needed stability in the middle of the park against a tough opponent

The game started as a quite scrappy affair, with the returning pivot of Hojbjerg and Skipp engaged in physical duels with West Ham’s own robust pair of Rice and Soucek. The game got more open eventually after Lucas put in a superb ball for Kane, who took it first time on his left foot only to be denied by Areola. Eventually, it was the home side who broke the deadlock after a patient build-up by Spurs after Skipp won the ball back. It was the forgotten man Steven Bergjwin who showed great strength and awareness in the box to create space for Pierre who crossed it back to him for a simple tap-in. West Ham responded quickly though, with skipper Lloris having to make a couple of stunning saves to deny Soucek who remained a nuisance in the box with his ariel prowess. They soon reaped the rewards of their persistence, capitalizing on a mistake by Eric Dier. Jarred Bowen made a beautiful turn in the box before slotting it past Hugo Lloris to bring the visitors on level terms.

Bergjwin brings out his signature celebration after his first goal of the season

But merely two minutes later, Bergjwin once again came clutch after a magnificent dribble into the box, which led to Lucas Moura’s goal. Both teams went close again in the first half, with Skipp making an amazing interception to deny Soucek, whilst Craig Dawson’s last man tackle ensured Bergjwin couldn’t get his second goal of the day.

West Ham started well in the second half, controlling possession and working the ball around nicely. But Conte once again showed why is one of the best in business, as he brought on Harry Winks and Son, reverting to a 352 formation which gave us more control and helped neutralize the dangerous Rice-Soucek pivot. There were still opportunities for both sides, most notably for Bowen, who was 1v1 through on goal but had the ball taken off of his feet by Lloris. On the other hand, the substitute Son took a heavy touch from another Kane through-ball which allowed Dawson to prevent an almost certain goal for us.

Lucas Moura in action. He scored 1, created 2 chances, and attempted 2 dribbles

West Ham responded with changes of their own, with Said Behnarama looking particularly dangerous. However, they couldn’t find an equalizer and the victory was ours after an intriguing London Derby.

We now progress to the semi-finals, where we face Chelsea for a spot in the final.

Sergio Regulion is ecstatic after Moura's goal

Key Takeaways:

· Bergjwin put in a great performance and showed that he can contribute too. Justified a place in the squad.

· Lloris is an absolute wall, we need to extend his contract ASAP

· Kane’s passing and link-up is sublime, but he needs to rediscover his shooting boots

· Moura has added end product to his game

· We look fatigued, probably due to COVID. The fixture congestion doesn’t look help us either