And that brings this MBM to an end. All that’s left is to direct you towards David Hytner’s match report, briskly dispatched from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and freshly landed at Guardian Towers. Enjoy, enjoy. And thanks for reading this report!
Manuel Pellegrini has his say. “We played a good game, we defended well, we attacked well. We need to play as a big team, to go to every stadium to try to win the game. Tottenham is our major rival and our fans must be very happy.”
Mauricio Pochettino’s verdict. “I am very disappointed. We all feel disappointed. It was tough, we knew it was going to be tough. They arrived in a very good condition, fresh, but for us the situation was completely different. But I have nothing to say, and we need to move on. It is tough to prepare a semi-final against a very good team like Ajax who arrive in a good condition, it is going to be difficult. The result today was no good for us, but to be doing this is unbelievable.”
Match-winner Michail Antonio speaks! “It’s beautiful. We’ve come here, put ourselves in history, and it’s only right that West Ham did it. It’s a big rivalry, West Ham and Tottenham go way back, so to be the first team to come here and win is a great achievement. We’re loving it, and the fans are loving it. We just want to keep going for the last few games of the season. I wasn’t aware [that he was the first player to score an away goal at the new stadium] but that’s another little mark in history, and I love it!”
West Ham celebrate their victory in expansive style, and who can blame them? They deserved to win on their second-half performance alone. The better team since the restart, they scored a fine goal, plaudits going both to the scorer Michail Antonio and Marco Arnautovic with the assist. And they had other chances too, as Spurs chased the game in the late stages. They consolidate 11th place, moving four points clear of Crystal Palace. Spurs meanwhile are still in the driving seat for Champions League qualification, but Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United all have opportunities to close in on them tomorrow afternoon. It’s going to be a nail-biting end to their season, and that’s without factoring in their big semi-final clash with Ajax!
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FULL TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 West Ham United
West Ham, who were the first team to beat Arsenal at the Emirates, repeat the trick at Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium!
90 min +4: Spurs so nearly equalise! Foyth dances down the right and loops a cross to Janssen, who heads powerfully towards goal. But Balbuena hooks off the line and clears! Eriksen delivers the ball back into the box from the left, but Fabianksi claims!
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90 min +3: Llorente heads on a high ball sent down the middle. It nearly drops to Son on the penalty spot. It breaks left to Janssen, who shoots towards the bottom right, an easy snaffle for Fabianski.
90 min +2: Lucas works hard out on the West Ham left to eat up some more time.
90 min +1: Whoosh! There goes the first of four added minutes.
90 min: This is some end to this fine game. Llorente dribbles away on the left and sends a ball across the face of goal, but Janssen can’t get anywhere close to poke home. Then Janssen has a dig from a tight angle on the left, but Fabianski deals with it easily. Finally Antonio bombs down the centre, and is about to shoot from just inside the box when Sanchez eases him off the ball with a well-timed shoulder charge. Totally legal, quite wonderful defending.
88 min: This is a wild end to this match. Anderson skedaddles down the left into acres, but can’t find anyone in the centre. Then up the other end, Eriksen floats a pass down the inside-left for Janssen, but there’s too much on the ball and it goes out for a goal kick.
87 min: The corner comes to nothing. Diop should have scored. A shame for the big defender, as he’d made quite the run.
86 min: West Ham push the clock management too far, as Fredericks is booked for taking his sweet time over a throw. And then Diop nearly scores a sensational goal, picking up the ball to the left of the centre circle, nutmegging Sanchez, and bursting clear down the middle! Having Beckenbauered his way to the edge of the box, he gets a nose bleed and takes his shot far too early. His low effort, towards the bottom left, is turned round the post by Lloris.
85 min: And now the West Ham captain makes way for Ogbonna. The clock ticks on, West Ham’s friend right now.
84 min: Eriksen crosses from the left for Llorente, who can’t connect at the far post. Then Alli makes way for Wanyama.
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83 min: Spurs clear the second West Ham corner. After a fashion. They haven’t looked secure at the back at any point this afternoon.
82 min: The corner’s half cleared, but Spurs can’t get out. Another corner is earned, this time on the left. “Am I dreaming or doesn’t anyone want to claim a top four placing other than Liverpool and Manchester City?” wonders Marzi De Santi. If Manchester United and Chelsea serve up a goalless draw tomorrow, you could well be onto something.
81 min: Diop launches a long, long ball down the inside right. Antonio romps after it and hammers a shot towards the bottom right. Lloris tips it round for a corner.
80 min: From a position to the left of the D, Arnautovic whips a curler towards the top right. Lloris meets it and snaffles well. That’ll be Arnautovic’s last act. He’s tweaked his hamstring and is replaced by Perez.
78 min: West Ham clear the corner easily enough, and are soon on the counter. Felipe Anderson and Antonio combine down the right, but Eriksen backtracks to put a stop to their gallop.
77 min: The newly rediscovered Janssen comes on for Rose. His very first act is to win a corner down the left.
76 min: Snodgrass, on a yellow, is replaced by Obiang.
74 min: Alli tries his best to put a stop to that notion, bustling through the centre of the West Ham defence. But he can’t get anything meaningful away, and the ball balloons into the hands of Fabianski. The Spurs crowd now pensive.
73 min: Something else for Spurs fans to consider: West Ham were the first team to win away at the Emirates. They’re now roughly 20 minutes away from completing a double that would propel their fans into a state of high amusement.
71 min: Eriksen plays a cute reverse pass down the inside-left channel, releasing Llorente into the area. Llorente drops a shoulder to glide past Fredericks, and shapes to shot, but the flag springs up for offside. It’s the correct decision.
69 min: Arnautovic has been excellent since the restart. He powers down the right and earns a throw deep in Tottenham territory off Alderweireld. Spurs manage to keep the door shut, but for a second they were fearing the quick one-two. Suddenly a top-four finish doesn’t quite look the shoo-in it once did.
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GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 0-1 West Ham United (Antonio 67)
West Ham become the first away side to score at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium! And it’s a belter! Arnautovic, tight on the right, dinks a curler towards Antonio, who chests down and barges into the box down the inside-right channel, past Sanchez, and lashes a shot past Lloris! That was a clever assist, and an even better finish.
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66 min: The first change of the day, as Lucas Moura is replaced by Fernando Llorente.
65 min: A bit of space down the left for Felipe Anderson. He does nothing creative in it. Good luck predicting who’ll score the first goal in this match, though. Both teams are going for it. There will be a first goal, won’t there? It’ll be very odd if this ends goalless. This match has been a blast.
63 min: Arnautovic powers his way down the right and looks to be unfairly impeded by Sanchez. But there’s no free kick. He continues to battle, and battle hard, but eventually loses out to a combination of Sanchez and Davies. Some good old-fashioned derby football, right there.
61 min: The corner is a complete waste of time. Antonio really should have laid off much earlier back there, to either Felipe Anderson or Arnautovic. Spurs were in a whole world of bother, light of defenders.
60 min: Eriksen batters it witlessly into the wall. Most uncharacteristic. West Ham pile forward on the counter, Antonio dribbling with great intent down the right. He drifts into the box and looks to shoot, but is closed down. The ball breaks to Felipe Anderson, whose shot is deflected over for a corner.
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59 min: The Spurs revival continues, as Rose races down the left only to be stopped unfairly by Balbuena. This is a free kick, just to the left of the D, and Eriksen is over it. Danger for West Ham.
57 min: Alli’s cameo has given Spurs a boost. First Alli makes good down the right again, but can’t find a team-mate with his cross. Eriksen then has a go down the same flank. His cross is no good either. Then Davies dances down the inside-left and nearly makes it all the way through, zipping past three challenges. The ball breaks right to Son, who tries to take a touch inside and shoot. But he runs into Masuaka instead. He wants a penalty but the defender had done nothing wrong. No dice.
55 min: West Ham’s brisk start to this second half has done for the Wall of Sound. I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles fills the airwaves. Alli tries to turn up the volume of his own fans by skipping down the right and standing one up for Dier in the middle, but Balbuena gets in the way to head clear.
53 min: The set piece drops to the feet of Diop at the far post. Spurs don’t deal with the situation very well, and are very fortunate that Diop takes a wild air-swipe at the ball. West Ham are getting closer and closer to scoring the first away goal at this new stadium.
52 min: Spurs look a little rattled at West Ham’s performance since the restart. Sanchez needlessly bundles over Anderson down the left. A free kick and a chance to load the box.
50 min: West Ham have come out on the front foot. Fabianski launches long down the right. Arnautovic brings it down gracefully, killing a high ball dead and spinning around in one stylish twirl, Cruyff and Le Tissier rolled into one. He nearly Le Tissiers the ball into the net from 25 yards, too, but Lloris does extremely well to gather. That would have been such a goal.
49 min: But West Ham have Spurs pinned back, and Noble draws a foul from an impatient Eriksen out near the left-hand corner flag. Another poor delivery by Snodgrass, and Son clears with ease.
48 min: The corner’s half cleared. Arnautovic has a dig from distance. Another deflection, another corner. Snodgrass will take this one from the left ... and fails to beat the first man.
47 min: Noble creams a glorious pass down the right to send Arnautovic barrelling into space. The striker cuts inside then lays off to Fredericks, romping in from behind. Fredericks blasts a shot goalwards from the edge of the box. It’s deflected. Corner.
And we’re off again! West Ham, having kept Spurs waiting, finally turn up and get the ball rolling again. No half-time changes. Spurs will be attacking their Wall of Sound in this second half.
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Half-time entertainment. Some good news for Spurs fans. Possibly.
HALF TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 0-0 West Ham United
There’s just enough time for Anderson to take a shot towards the bottom right of the Spurs goal. It instead hits the right of Alderweireld’s bottom, and nearly pings off into the other side of the goal. Lloris does extremely well to react, change direction and smother. And that’s that, the end of a very entertaining first half. More of this, please, only with added goals if possible.
44 min: Alli threatens to dribble through the middle of the West Ham defence. Balbuena brushes him from behind, and he goes down. It should be a free kick, just outside the area, but the referee reckons there wasn’t enough contact. The ball breaks wide right to Foyth, who leathers a diagonal shot wide left.
42 min: Masuaka whips a cross in from the left. Lloris punches clear powerfully with Arnautovic in close attendance. Up the other end, Son leaves one on Snodgrass, and gets away with it, much to the disgust of the game’s only booked player.
40 min: Noble stands still with the ball at his feet for what feels like a minute. Alli barges him off it and waltzes away. No foul. Then the ball’s passed back to Lloris, who freezes, and is nearly closed down by Arnautovic. He kicks away just in time. For a minute back there, this match turned into a work by Gilbert and George.
38 min: Foyth makes his way down the right, drifts inside and clips a ball forward for Son, who finds himself in Eriksen Country, on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. Like his team-mate 60 seconds beforehand, Son’s shot is blocked by the alert Fabianski ... and the flag goes up for offside anyway.
37 min: Lucas Moura has been Tottenham’s best player today. He turns on the jets mid-dribble and makes it to the byline to the right of goal. His pullback takes a deflection, a clearance is blocked by Son, and the ball falls to the feet of Eriksen, on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. Eriksen tries to lift the ball over Fabianski, but the keeper has read the danger well and spreads to block. It’s the closest either team has come to opening the scoring.
35 min: Son dribbles daintily down the centre, but just as it looks as though he’s opened West Ham up, a heavy touch puts a stop to his grand idea. Both teams are really going for this, it’s slightly odd that the keepers haven’t had more work to do.
34 min: Antonio sashays past a couple of half-arsed Spurs challenges, deep on the right, then knocks a diagonal pass towards Felipe Anderson, in acres on the left. He should be sending his team-mate clear, but there’s too much juice on the ball and it flies harmlessly through to Lloris.
32 min: A long ball down the middle nearly exposes the Spurs defence, but with Antonio and Arnautovic lurking on the edge of the box, Sanchez steps in to tidy up.
30 min: This match is being played at 100mph. It’s like watching USSR v Belgium at the 1986 World Cup.
28 min: Alli dinks a fine pass down the left to release Son into the box. For a split second, it looks as though Son might have space for a shot from a tight angle, but Diop is across quickly to stick on his man, and usher him away from danger. Fine defending.
26 min: The first booking of the game is earned by Snodgrass, who slides in on Lucas Moura. It wasn’t nasty, but it was mistimed and late, and a little from behind. He can’t complain.
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25 min: Son dribbles towards the West Ham box, from left to right, and drops a shoulder. His dig is deflected out for a corner on the right. Nothing much comes of it. But Spurs are soon coming back at the visitors, Lucas Moura opening up down the inside right and creaming a low diagonal drive inches wide of the left-hand post. That really was very close. Not sure Fabianski was getting any fingers to that had it been on target.
23 min: It’s developing into a fine end-to-end duel. Rose nearly breaks clear into the West Ham box down the left, but runs the ball out of play with a clumsy touch. Then Antonio lashes over from 25 yards. A goal’s coming soon, surely. But at what end?
21 min: Everything and everyone pinging around in the pinball style. Both teams are going for this. It’s making for a very lively spectacle.
19 min: West Ham spring back into action. Fredericks makes his way down the right and sends a low fizzer wide of goal. Lloris tips it round anyway to concede a needless corner. Snodgrass takes; Antonio slaps a header wide right from close range. Then seconds later, the Hammers are coming at Spurs again, Felipe Anderson skittering down the left at pace. Spurs are light at the back, so it’s something of a disappointment for West Ham when he hoicks a lame shot straight into Lloris’s arms. Arnautovic was free on the penalty spot, and reacts as you’d imagine he would.
17 min: Space for Rose down the left. He hoicks a cross into the West Ham box from deep. The wind converts it into a looping shot, and for a second it looks like beating Fabianski, retreating in panic, and dropping into the top right. But it sails wide right, the keeper escorting the ball out of play, having rediscovered his bearings in time.
15 min: Dier and Moura one-two their way down the middle. It’s looking promising until Diop steps up to intercept. This is a nice open, flowing game. Though most of the flowing is being done by Spurs. After that brief flurry at the start, West Ham are second best right now.
13 min: Eriksen juggles the ball down the left and lifts a pass forward for Alli. He’s away down the left too! He enters the box and looks to curl one into the top right, but doesn’t get enough elevation on the shot and it’s blocked by Fredericks. West Ham are looking vulnerable on this flank.
11 min: Spurs are beginning to assert themselves after a slow-ish start. Moura is at the heart of everything. He twists and turns in the centre circle and lays off to Alli, who slips a pass down the inside left for Son. The striker’s away! He romps into the box and looks for the bottom left, his options limited by Balbuena to his right. Fabianski gets down very well to smother. That’s his 137th save of the season, the best of the Premier League. (For the record, Cardiff’s Neil Etheridge, with 126, is next on the list.)
9 min: Lucas Moura glides in from the left then picks up speed, dribbling hard at Rice, who doesn’t move. Slam. That’s a blatant body check and a free kick 35 yards out. Eriksen floats the set piece into the box. It’s only half cleared, and Moura very nearly sends Son clear with a cute slide-rule pass down the inside-right channel. It’s intercepted by Diop.
7 min: Alderweireld quarterbacks from deep. He sprays a ball down the middle for Son, but the striker wanted it out on the right, and the pass flies harmlessly through to Fabianski.
5 min: Finally Spurs get going. Son looks for his 21st goal of the season, chasing a bouncing ball down the inside-right channel. The ball sits up invitingly, and Son gives it a rare old lash, but it’s wild and high. That’ll have got the juices flowing at least.
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4 min: The noise in this stadium is magnificent. Both sets of fans giving it plenty in the early moments. West Ham appear to have come out with a view to throwing the kitchen sink at Spurs, they’re sharp in the tackle and committing plenty of men forward. It’s a high-octane start, and the hosts haven’t had much of a chance to get anything together so far.
2 min: Mind you, Declan Rice does his level best to give West Ham a flying start. Snodgrass made good down the left, causing Spurs a bit of bother. The ball breaks back to Rice, 25 yards out, and he sends a screamer inches over the bar. That one caused a collective sharp intake of breath. It was close!
And we’re off! The hosts get the party started. It’s been a week for quick goals: Southampton striker Shane Long’s seven-second wonder at Watford in midweek, Naby Keita’s comparatively slothful 15-second effort for Liverpool against Huddersfield Town last night. But the first 60 seconds have passed here, and neither net has billowed yet. Come on folks, people have paid good money for this.
The teams are out! Tottenham Hotspur wear their famous lilywhite, daring to do. West Ham meanwhile sport their storied claret and blue. It’s a purist’s dream. As is quickly becoming custom, there’s a belting atmosphere at the New White Hart Lane (they really should call it High Road) though to be fair there’s always a hubbub whenever these two meet. We’ll be off in two shakes of a lamb’s tail!
It’s Charity Day at Spurs. The club are helping to raise funds for Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospice. Players are warming up in these shirts, while yesterday Mauricio Pochettino visited the charity’s new hospice building.
Mauricio Pochettino talks! “I am only thinking of today. This is the most important game, we do not think of the next one. I have picked the best players available to win. I have told the players the most important game is today, we have to be sure we are going to compete in our best way. Of course we cannot avoid risk, we are in the middle of the fight for the top four and the Champions League. But today Vertonghen is out of the squad, he has big fatigue and today would be a massive risk to play with him. But we rotate because I think the best starting XI is the one we have today. We know this is a derby, and means more than a game. They are a very good team and we must be focused. It is going to be tough.”
Manuel Pellegrini speaks! “We want and need to finish with a competitive team and more points. We must finish in the best way. We are conceding too many goals, but I am happy with the way we played the last two games and hopefully we can win this game. I am confident that if we repeat the game we played at Manchester United, we can win today. Spurs have a very strong squad, and must try to qualify for the Champions League, so I am sure their mind is just on this game.”
Spurs make four changes to the XI named for the 1-0 win over Brighton. Davinson Sanchez, Eric Dier, Juan Foyth and Ben Davies replace Kieran Tripper, Victor Wanyama, Fernando Llorente and Jan Vertonghen, who has picked up an injury.
West Ham swap out two players from the XI selected for the 2-2 draw with Leicester City. Ryan Fredericks and Issa Diop replace Pablo Zabaleta and Angelo Ogbonna. Jack Wilshere’s comeback from injury continues with a place on the bench.
The teams
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Alderweireld, Sanchez, Davies, Foyth, Dier, Alli, Rose, Eriksen, Son, Lucas Moura.
Subs: Trippier, Janssen, Wanyama, Walker-Peters, Llorente, Gazzaniga, Skipp.
West Ham United: Fabianski, Fredericks, Balbuena, Diop, Masuaku, Rice, Antonio, Noble, Snodgrass, Felipe Anderson, Arnautovic.
Subs: Zabaleta, Adrian, Obiang, Hernandez, Wilshere, Ogbonna, Lucas Perez.
Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire).
Preamble
West Ham United have lost three of their last four matches, haven’t won in five, and have already been beaten by Tottenham Hotspur twice this season, in the League (0-1) and League Cup (1-3). While the Hammers mooch around in mid-table, Spurs sit third, have a fair chance of winning the Champions League, and have a record in their fancy new stadium of P4 W4 F8 A0. If recent form is anything to go by, this should be a home banker.
Football’s never that cut and dried, though, is it? Spurs have only won three of their last nine home games against West Ham, who would be delighted to become the first club to leave High Road (they really should call it that) with a goal or two or point or three. The hosts will understandably have one eye on their Champions League semi-final with Ajax on Tuesday evening. And they struggled to break down Brighton & Hove Albion midweek, requiring a late, late Christian Eriksen superstrike to squeak past. So it’s far from a pipe dream for the Hammers.
Spurs can’t take anything for granted in the race to secure a top-four berth and guarantee a Champions League spot for next season, though. Especially with all the teams in that battle acting so erratically. So this is balanced rather deliciously. It’s windy! It’s all to play for! It’s on!
Kick off: 12.30pm BST.
