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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Josh O'Brien

Tottenham 3-1 West Ham: 5 talking points as Son boosts Spurs Champions League hopes

Tottenham Hotspur toppled London rivals West Ham courtesy of a 3-1 victory that allows them to leapfrog the Hammers in the table.

It was Spurs' third top goal-scorer of the season that put Antonio Conte's side in front - own goals. Kurt Zouma was the guilty party as he managed to inadvertently knee the ball beyond his goalkeeper while trying to stop Son Heung-Min.

While he couldn't claim the first, Son will go down as scorer of the second despite the fact it did strike Zouma on the way in yet again. Lukasz Fabianski could do very little but stand and watch it fly past.

Said Benrahma pulled one back from the visitors with a fantastic finish from an in-swinging Aaron Cresswell corner, but West Ham failed to generate any momentum as a result.

Spurs were eventually good value for their money, with Son adding his second and Tottenham's third late on to put the game beyond any doubt.

Mirror Football has analysed this London derby's main talking points.

Kane and Son link up again

Heung-Min Son thanks Harry Kane for his assist ((Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images))

No two players have provided goals for each other more than Tottenham’s star duo, this latest outing providing their 38th combination and it was certainly one of their best.

Kane picked the ball up bang on the halfway line before firing a delightful through ball into the path of Son who is often so lethal coming in off the left flank before cutting in on his right.

Despite knowing this, there was very little the Hammers backline could do as Zouma looked particularly reluctant to try and engage with Son as he edged closer to the danger zone.

The Frenchman was swiftly punished for his stand-off defending as Son’s strike deflected off of Zouma once again before flying in over the head of the helpless Fabianski.

Everything positive from a Spurs perspective appeared to flow through Kane, who enjoyed dropping deep and wreaking havoc with his pinpoint passing.

The race for top four

Antonio Conte Spurs side keep the pressure on Arsenal with a win ((Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images))

The result makes a North London shootout for the coveted fourth spot all the more likely as Conte’s side now sit just three points behind neighbours Arsenal. After the win over the Hammers, Spurs go from eighth in the table to fifth though they have played one game more than the Gunners.

In contrast, defeat arguably all but ends any faint hopes West Ham had of Champions League qualification via the league table given they are now six points adrift of fourth having played two games more than Mikel Arteta’s men.

A victory for Spurs makes the yet-to-be scheduled home tie against Arsenal all the more mouth-watering, a potential winner takes all contest between two of the Premier League’s most fierce rivals.

West Ham’s European hangover

Tomas Soucek was one of many West Ham stars to look tired after Thursday's heroics ((Photo by James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images))

David Moyes’ side struggled to get to grips with the threat posed by their hosts after 120 minutes of Europa League action against Sevilla on Thursday night. They found themselves on the back foot almost immediately after Zouma’s own goal with just nine minutes on the clock left the visitors with an uphill battle.

A number of West Ham’s most reliable performers looked notably lethargic when up against Spurs players who had enjoyed an extra two days of rest. Even after Benrahma pulled one back mid-way through the first-half, the Hammers failed to place their hosts under significant pressure and put Spurs under the cosh.

Instead, the rest of the first-half played out as damp squib – much to the delight of the home side. West Ham’s fatigue was evident as the game wore on; Spurs allowed to sit on their one goal cushion with minimal pressure as the Hammers failed to create many meaningful chances.

A story of similar styles

Antonio Conte and David Moyes deployed a similar set-up ((Photo by Eddie Keogh/Getty Images))

Both Conte and Moyes opted to deploy five at the back in a bid to nullify the wide-threat posed by either side. However, it arguably came to the Hammers detriment early on when a ball from central defender Craig Dawson just about reached wing-back Arthur Masuaku, but his pocket was quickly picked by his opposite number Matt Doherty.

Doherty swiftly linked up with Kane, who used his strength to fend off opposition before teasing the ball across the face of the goal. Spurs were fortunate with the way it eventually ended up in the net after Zouma’s knee deflected the ball beyond West Ham’s Polish shot-stopper.

Another sloppy pass from Dawson soon after invited further pressure from Doherty, as Spurs’ full-backs gained a tighter stronghold on the game while penning West Ham’s back. Most of the game passed West Ham's wing-backs by with minimal influence as Masuaku and Ben Johnson were both pegged back on defensive duties. The former was eventually withdrawn just before the hour mark as Moyes reverted back to a back four.

More goal-post protests

A protestor tries to tie himself to the goal post during the game as stewards intervene ((Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images))

The same ‘just stop oil’ protests that tarnished Everton ’s dramatic win over Newcastle in mid-week nearly had a similar impact at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium were it not for the speedy response of stadium stewards.

Two protesters attempted to cable-tie themselves to the frame of the goal during a break in play as the two sets of players protested an incident that occurred off the ball as Spurs prepared to take a corner. Eagle-eyed referee Anthony Taylor was the only figure on the pitch who appeared to notice the pair run on to the turf in a bid to make their statement.

Thankfully, they were swiftly deal with by stewards who wasted little time in removing them from the pitch and allowing the game to continue.

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