Sat 20 February 2021, 10:11
Tottenham HotspurIt’s a London derby at the London Stadium as we take on West Ham on Sunday (12 noon) - so who better to call for our Preview Panel than football.london’s Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold and his counterpart at West Ham, Tom Clark?
Alasdair Gold
"Derbies between Tottenham and West Ham rarely fail to bring goals and a battle. October's clash between the two sides brought that and then some and that 3-3 draw felt like a key moment for both sides. Spurs' late collapse seemed to serve as a lesson for them - rightly or wrongly - to be less open in future matches, particularly in the Premier League, as the players instinctively looked to guard against similar happening again. For West Ham that late rally helped forge their growing bond as a team under David Moyes and they have rarely looked back since that moment. More often than not, it's Tottenham coming into this fixture as the in-form team and for the Hammers to be looking to trip them up, something they have invariably done in the past. So, for the fifth-placed Hammers to be hosting their rivals as the higher-placed side and in good form should provide a different dynamic to this particular derby clash.
"For Tottenham it will be all about those players who should be fresher after a midweek rest of sorts in Harry Kane, Heung-Min Son, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Tanguy Ndombele, and those who staked their claim in the Europa League win such as Gareth Bale, Dele Alli and Lucas Moura. It was the shift in momentum Spurs needed after a tough week and they have to take that good feeling across the capital. West Ham will be organised, they will give everything, and Tottenham will have to match that motivation or they will come unstuck. Moyes' men are an attacking threat, having scored more goals than Spurs in the Premier League, and they share them across the squad with Tomas Soucek such a danger. Tottenham will be tested to the limit from set pieces. If Jose Mourinho's men can come away with a big result, then it could be the game that sparks a strong run into the business end of the season."
Tom Clark
"It’s a huge game for West Ham. It really will set a marker down if they were able to get a win. It would mean so much for West Ham fans to finish above Tottenham and that would be nine points, admittedly with Spurs still having a game in hand. It would also really cement West Ham as serious European contenders. David Moyes has suggested maybe Champions League would be too much for them, and no-one expected them to be anywhere near the Champions League places, but a win against Tottenham and then anything other than Europa League would be disappointing. A year ago, you wouldn’t believe we were even talking about this, but West Ham are playing really, really well. This will be a tough game for Spurs, also taking into account the extra few days’ rest for West Ham while Spurs played in Europe, that all helps.
"There was a change in defence around Christmas. Craig Dawson came in. He was a loan signing from a Championship club (Watford), but he’s made such a difference in that back four, although it might not be a back four this weekend, after Angelo Ogbonna’s injury at United (9 February) as Moyes switched it up for Sheffield United on Monday (3-0 win), and it worked very well. It’s a solid defence with two very good players in Tomas Soucek and Declan Rice in front, Jesse Lingard has made a difference in the last three games as well, but the good run started a long time before his arrival (on loan from United). That gives the team a brilliant platform. If you are not conceding goals and you can get a few going forward, then you are always going to pick up more points than you drop. This is also the best team in the Premier League in terms of set pieces, you can see that in the stadium with those fantastic deliveries from any number of players, Vladimir Coufal and Aaron Cresswell the full-backs, Rice, Said Benrahma, Lingard fancies them as well. Dawson is such a threat, as is Soucek. I’m sure that’s an area West Ham will target."
