Righto, Jacob Steinberg’s match report has landed, so I’ll leave you with that. Thanks for your company and comments – enjoy the rest of the weekend. Peace out.
Conte is happy, having a seen a team playing football from start to finish. He thinks his team dominated the game – a little bit of an exaggeration in mine – and says the atmosphere was incredible, the fans happy to see their team win in this way. He wants to stay in the race for fourth place, a difficult task when he arrived, but his players are improving, showing commitment, and the work they’re doing is paying off. He thinks City, Chelsea, Liverpool and United are the best teams in the league, but if one drops off there’s a chance for Spurs and given the situation now, his players can do it. Arsenal have an advantage, but they’ve got to visit Tottenham, and this is probably the most relaxed I’ve seen him since he took the job.
And in the women’s FA Cup:
Oh man, this is so great. Football!
1994 @1kevincampbell x Wright ❤️
— Ian Wright (@IanWright0) March 20, 2022
2022 Campbell x Wright-Phillips ❤️ pic.twitter.com/e2g36cQMJo
Earlier today:
I reckon Spurs’ performance today was getting towards where Conte wants it to be. In his system, the wing-backs are so important, and they were both really aggressive and high from the start. West Ham, though, were silly to match up formation. In so doing they made overlaps and crosses – their likeliest routes to goal – harder to achieve – and also offered space in behind to a team to struggle to break down low blocks.
Son tells Sky that Spurs played really well, creating lots of chances. He’s really happy with how the team played, and knew that West Ham had played 120 minutes on Thursday night, so though Spurs wanted to play quickly for that reason, they didn’t focus too much on their opponents. It’s always good to win before the international break, “going away with the free mind” – that’s a lovely turn of phrase – and asked about his relationship with Kane, he says he’s spoke about it more than 100 times now. But it’s incredible to have him, and he feels bad his mate didn’t score today as a teammate and as a friend. Aw!
Sobering thoughts here:
At the City Ground, it remains Forest 0-0 Liverpool just past the half-hour.
I wonder how Moyes will play things from here. On the one hand, he’s got a fair few players who’ve played a lot of football, so might benefit from a rest with all energies directed at winning the Europa. However, much as they’ll hope it gets them into the Champions League, if it doesn’t, they’ll want to be in it again, and that will require some serious effort.
That’s a decent afternoon’s work for Spurs. It was a great time to play West Ham, but they made sure to cash in, and even at 2-1, they looked pretty comfortable.
Full-time: Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 West Ham United
Spurs win back to back games for the first time this year and move above Man United into fourth place – three points behind Arsenal but having played a game more. West Ham slip to seventh – six behind Arsenal but having playing twice more.
Updated
90+5 min Alan Smith gives Son man of the match. I’d’ve gone for Kane, whose smooth passing has been the different to my mind, but not with a great deal of conviction. And as I type that, Bergwijn’s trickery fashions a crossing opportunity, and he stands up a cross to the far post where Kane is basically planning his celebration, only for Emerson Royal to take it away from him with a poor header that flies wide.
90+3 min Back to West Ham, they’ve still got a decent chance of qualifying for the Champions League because they’re a serious threat in the Europa. Barca and Leipzig will take some beating, but believe West Ham are capable – though it’d be just like them to lose to Lyon.
90+2 min Spurs send on Moura and Bergwijn for Son and Kulusevski.
Updated
90 min There’ll be five added minutes.
9o min West Ham will be six points behind Arsenal having played twice more; the top four is beyond them now, but Spurs, who’ve finally aborted their win-lose cycle, are bang in the chase. Realistically, I don’t think they’ve got the class to force themselves above their local rivals, but with their strikers you never know.
GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 West Ham United (Son 88)
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before! A straight ball from Lloris, a flick-on from Kane, who’s attracted both markers to him, allowing Son to control beautifully, his first touch taking the ball into stride. He advances, and you know what’s going to happen next because there are few better one-on-one finishers in world football; he steadies and slots under Fabianski into the bottom-left, having done the keeper with the eyes.
Updated
87 min Bentancur is down with cramp, so while he’s treated, Conte sends on Royal for Reguilon.
86 min Benrahma collects Dawson’s header, which drops behind him, attempts to stick it back in the mixer, and when no one can get a head on it, the ball comes back from the opposite flank and Fabianski collects well.
85 min It was Lanzini who scored the brilliant late equaliser in last season’s 3-3 draw and we can be sure it’ll be on the minds of the Spurs players. West Ham are struggling to sustain pressure, though ... but as I type that they win a corner down the right...
84 min Moyes sends on Vlasic for Lanzini.
83 min So far, Bentancur and Kulusevski look good acquisitions for Spurs as both are better than what was there before. But also so far, neither look good enough to materially affect the quality of the team, and it’s that that makes me wonder about Conte: does he know the difference between transformative players and players out of whom he can get more than anyone else? Nowadays, the latter won’t be enough to challenge for the title, never mind win it.
82 min Spurs are pressing for number three now, and when Reguilon’s cross picks out Doherty, his shot is decent ... but Dawson blocks, the loose ball falling to Bentancur, who drives wide.
80 min Aaargggghhh! Hojbjerg collects the ball from Bentancur and jabs a decent ball into Kane ... and he’s in! But his first touch gets a little caught under his feet, so he has to take another before shooting, by which point his body-shape is all wrong and rather than attack the finish with his laces, he has to try and force a curler with the outside of his right foot, sending the effort a couple of yards over the bar.
78 min Kane again drops deep, feeding Son to his left. But there are enough defenders able to clutter his route to goal, such that Spurs have to start again. They’ll not mind that, taking heat and time out of the game with West Ham unwilling to press them; unsurprising given the match they played in midweek.
76 min Here come Spurs again, Reguilon racing down the left, but he runs out of balance as he runs out of space, sliding a shot wide of the far post.
76 min West Ham probe, but their passing is too slow to pull Spurs out of position, and Dawson sends a long ball out of play.
Updated
74 min Neither side are quite at it today, so there’s been little sustained pressure from either, and increasingly Spurs look dangerous on the counter; as I type that, they break again, Kane finding Kulusevski, whose shot from distance is blocked at source.
73 min At the City Ground, Forest v Liverpool is under way. Following along with that one, here:
71 min Kane may or may not be there then, but in the meantime he’s the best thing about this team by an aeon, and when Son breaks down the left, he’s inside and moving onto Kulusevksi. For a moment, the gap opens for a curler into the far top corner, but it’s a tiny one and the effort spins wide.
70 min Throwing it forward a moment, I can see what Conte wants Spurs to do, but I’m not certain where that’s going to take them. The league has moved on since he won it with Chelsea, and I can’t see Spurs challenging for top four next season unless they spend serious money in the summer.
69 min Rice collects a poor clearance from Reguilon and West Ham probe down the left, but Fornals loses the ball to Romero and Spurs work it clear nicely.
68 min Spurs have upped it these last few minutes, having spent the 10 before sitting inside their own box. They absolutely do not have the defence for that, whether they get away with it on this occasion or not.
66 min Bit of welcome possession for Spurs, Son turning to feed Doherty, who stands up a cross to the far post where Reguilon is all over Johnson. Heading against him and behind, he’s pure radge when the ref awards a goalkick.
64 min Fornals makes a yard, curling into the box, but Dier is up to clear. Kane then brings Spurs away, and this match is one little spark away from exploding.
62 min West Ham are looking decent now, but Spurs are a threat on the counter, and as I type that Kane comes deep again, sliding another gorgeously-weighted pass into the path of Reguilon. But Johnson catches up with him and makes a decent challenge; Reguilon wants a penalty, but the ref is having nee such thing.
61 min Fornals slides a reverse-pass in behind for Yarmolenko, who tries to screw a left-footed shot goalwards but overbalances, slicing wide of the near post instead.
60 min Spurs are sitting off now, and though West Ham are more of a counter-attacking side, this might suit them because there’s a strong chance of set-pieces against a side who defend them poorly.
58 min What a couple of weeks it’s been for Andriy Yarmolenko, who’s country has been attacked; I’ve no idea what it takes to compete in those circumstances, never mind to score two memorable winners. Anyhow, West Ham are now playing 4-2-3-1, I think, Yarmolenlo through the middle with Benrahma behind.
57 min Moyes sends on Fornals and Yarmolenko for Masuaku and Antonio. I’m not surprised at the players coming in, but didn’t think Antonio would be one of those hooked.
55 min Son’s corner is decent, clipped to the bear post, but Masuaku heads clear and Antonio leads the counter, barging Reguilon off the ball but unable to make anything happen. But have a look! West Ham sustain the pressure, Masuakau crossing, Benrahma bringing down, then Dawson crossing for Antonio, who has time to punch home a finish but takes his eye off it and skews a poor effort wide. That’s a colossal oversight.
Updated
54 min There’s still a kerfuffle in the box, so Rice is told to calm his players down; the other captain, Lloris, is right up the other end so is spared a lecture from the ref. Things are warming up and rightly so.
52 min There’s a scuffle in the box, Reguilon charging at Masuaku for some reason or other, but the ref defuses things then someone handcuffs themselves to the post, and there’s a break while stewards resolve things.
Updated
51 min Lovely from Spurs, Bentancur fouling Benrahma deep inside his onwn half and setting off a counter, Son screeching through the middle and rolling in Kane. We’ve seen this once or twice before, but Fabianski charges out of his goal to smother the attempted clip over him and cost of a corner.
50 min Trying to get a head on a ball to the back post, Doherty stoops, right as Masuaku chucks a boot at things. There’s a bit of contact, but the Spurs man will be fine.
49 min Better from West Ham, who get the ball into Antonio on the left touchline. He feels Romero behind him, knocks him over and kicks through him – behaviour for which he’s penalised. But these are situations they need to engineer more of.
47 min With a win here, Spurs would go a point ahead of Man United, who sit fifth in the table, but they’d still be three behind Arsenal – who have a game in hand and really should close it out.
Updated
46 min The draw for last four of the FA Cup: Man City v Forest or Liverpool, Chelsea v Crystal Palace.
46 min We go again!
Our teams are back with us.
Goodness me.
Kick-off is being delayed as the referee is briefed by the Head of Security. A number of grenades that were thrown onto the pitch have made holes in the pitch. #Newells #ClásicoRosarino #CopaBinance
— Newell's Old Boys - English (@Newells_en) March 20, 2022
Half-time email: “Please can you forward names of the half-price Rice killers,” emails Brian Withington. “We’ll take two.”
I’m not a scout, but I’m not certain he’s better than Kamara, Bissouma or Haidara to name three. More than that, though, much as I admire him, I don’t think I’ve ever watched him and thought what he does is unusual, so paying upwards of £100m for that seems a lot.
Half-time entertainment: my favourite Spurs - West Ham goal.
Half-time: Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 West Ham United
Spurs haven’t been vintage or anything like it, but West Ham are doing well to still be in this.
Updated
45+2 min Antonio drifts wide and tosses a tempting ball towards the back post, but the diving Soucek can’t quite direct his diving header on target.
45+1 min Thin end of the wedge, this.
— Tom Worville (@Worville) March 20, 2022
45 min There’ll be two added minutes.
45 min Now Spurs win a corner, Reguilon crossing into Johnson, but it comes to nowt.
44 min ...but this time, Hojbjerg goes down, shoved by Zouma, and the ref gives Spurs a free-kick. Silly behaviour from the RSPCA man.
Updated
43 min A quiet period which will suit West Ham. Though they’ve now scored, they’ve not really got momentum, and I’m sure Moyes is keen to get them in. But as I type that, Benrahma wins a free-kick off Reguilon, so here we go again...
41 min West Ham need to get bodies “in and around” Antonio. At the moment, he’s too isolated – Lanzini isn’t in the game.
40 min Kulusevski finds Kane who finds Reguilon and accepts his return pass, crunching a low drive wide of the near post.
Updated
39 min West Ham will be delighted to still be in this. Spurs haven’t made many chances bar the goals, but they’ve been by far the better side on general play.
37 min Back to Rice, I think his performance at Spurs in the League Cup is the best I’ve seen from him. I know West Ham were chasing a goal with the pitch ceded to them, but although his team didn’t score, he was very impressive.
GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 West Ham United (Benrahma 35)
Cresswell swings the corner out, towards Dawson around the penalty spot, and he gets enough on the header to send the ball square to Benrahma. The finish it demands of him, a controlled volley inside the near post, is extremely tricky, but he takes it superbly and we got ourselves a ball-game!
Updated
35 min A misjudgment from Doherty hands West Ham a corner – exactly what they’ll want to try and force a route back into the game...
34 min How good do we think Declan Rice is? I’m a big fan, but can’t help but think that you could get a better player for half of what he’d cost, if you were so inclined. I guess what Rice gives you is character, personality and leadership – qualities that shouldn’t be easily discounted.
32 min Son’s kick misses the man at the front post, but just behind is Rice, who heads clear.
31 min This is much too easy for Spurs, so Masuakau rattles Kane to try and rouse something in his teammates. Instead, Son will now swerve a free-kick into the box...
29 min It’s easy to complicate football, but this match reminds me a lot of Graeme Souness’ line, “the team that gets to the ball first wins”. So far, Spurs are much quicker than West Ham.
Updated
27 min Moyes may be regretting his decision to match-up Spurs’ formation. Ultimately, Spurs are more used to playing it and also have better strikers, so it’s not surprising they’re ahead.
26 min However, this match last season...
GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 2-0 West Ham United (Son 24)
Kane is such a beautiful footballer, and he collects Bentancur’s perceptive pass in stride, accelerates through the centre-circle, and calculates a sensational through-ball that sticks Son in! He takes a touch as Fabianski advances, chucks a lollipop, shoots, and the effort clips the sliding Zouma, fizzing over the keeper and into the far side-netting! Already, this feels over!
Updated
23 min Spurs counter and Son trips Dawson; the ref stops play to book him, thereby denying an advantage.
23 minWest Ham win a free-kick in centrefield and Cresswell clips it in, but Romero is up to clear.
21 mi Cresswell spreads for Masuaku, whose cross is blocked. But Spurs will be happy to defend those kinds of attacks – one overlapping the other would be much harder to handle, because West Ham could then try and work a better angle for delivery.
19 min Son wriggles across the face of the West Ham box and feeds Kulusevski, but he can’t fund an angle for a serious shot or pass. Spurs, though, will want to add a second during this period, because chances are West Ham will wake up at some point.
18 min City now lead Southampton 4-1. This was a close game 15 minutes ago.
18 min Kane harries as West Ham try to play out and wins the ball back, spreading for Doherty, whose cross can’t pick out Kulusevski.
16 min Bit better from West Ham keeping the ball inside the Spurs half while probing for gaps. And look at this from Benrahma, slowing up Son then sliding down the outside to unfurl a terrific cross that Antonio can’t quite reach, on the leap.
14 min A poor clearance from Dawson allows Doherty to shoot, but he gets back in to head the resultant cross away from Son. West Ham still have Thursday night in their legs.
12 min Now it’s Kulusevski charging forwards, and I don’t see what happens because my SkyGo crashes, but when it returns, Alan Smith chastises him for not shooting.
10 min Kane plays a blind pass for Dier that Antonio reads, barrelling onto it as Dier collapses like a house of straw, and Antonio lashes a drive just wide of the far post.
GOAL! Tottenham Hotspur 1-0 West Ham United (Zouma o.g. 9)
Victor Moses, or Matt Doherty as he’s known these days, chases into a challenge with Masuaku, winning the ball and finding Kane, who nips down the right side of the box to slip a square pass for Son. But Zouma comes across, and in trying to get to it first as the shot comes in, deflects the opener past Fabianski. Own goals now has 10 for Spurs this season, more than everyone bar the two main men.
Updated
8 min Talking of Kane, where do we think he is now? At 28, is he getting worse, or would he be devastating in a better team?
7 min West Ham move it about, looking to shifts Spurs who sit back in their shape – until Kane leads an uncoordinated, unsuccessful press.
6 min It’s probably just me who, when they think of Phil Foden, also thinks of this:
6 min Back at St Mary’s, Fill Phoden has finished matters, putting City 3-1 up on Soton.
5 min West Ham are indeed playing five at the back and here’s Johnson, with licence to attack, crossing from the right ... but Dier collects and clears.
3 min Zouma gives it away and Davies steams in, moving deep into the West Ham half. He might have a dig, but instead finds Kane who tries to turn ... but finds Rice bang up in his grille, the tackle is swift and effective.
2 min Did I really use the phrase “going forward”? Strength and comfort to my friends and family at this difficult time.
1 min Kulusevski, who’s made such a good start to his Tottenham career, finds Kane, who can’t find Son. But that front three will be a serious threat, today and going forward.
1 min And away we go!
The players take the knee. All Black lives matter.
There’ll now be a minute’s applause to mark the passing of Peter Barnes, who worked as secretary for both our cubs.
Elsewhere, a soft penalty means Man City lead 2-1 at Southampton in the Cup. Follow along with that one here.
Moyes will also know his team expended a serious amount of energy and emotion on Thursday night, so might want to ease them into the game to begin with, and aping the oppo is a decent way of helping that happen. Anyway, here come the teams!
By the looks of things, West Ham have gone to three at the back to match Spurs up, Masuaku replacing Fornals. I guess that makes some sense – Moyes probably thinks he has the better team – and with Jarrod Bowen missing, he might not have the wide players to get around the sides, usually the best way of exploiting a tea playing three at the back.
The teams
Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Romero, Dier, Davies, Doherty,
Bentancur, Hojbjerg, Reguilon, Kulusevski, Son, Kane.
Subs: Sanchez, Winks, Emerson, Rodon, Gollini, Bergwijn, Lucas Moura, White, Scarlett.
West Ham: Fabianski, Johnson, Dawson, Zouma, Cresswell, Rice, Soucek, Benrahma, Lanzini, Masuaku, Antonio.
Subs: Yarmolenko, Fornals, Vlasic, Areola, Noble, Diop, Fredericks, Kral, Perkins.
Referee: Anthony Taylor (Cheshire)
Preamble
Most football matches aren’t much use – for every classic, there’s absolutely loads of nonsense. Why, then, has the so-called beautiful game taken over the world?
Well, partly there’s the prospect of something good, so that even if it fails to materialise, it gives us the hope that real life lacks. And partly, it’s because of fixtures like this one, where the quality of play matters about as much as the context – near enough not at all – because the aspects of pride and identity, love and hate, are so intensely compelling.
But when we’ve got quality and context as well – which we do today – we’re talking about something seriously incendiary.
Both sides, West Ham in particular, are coming off huge midweek wins, and though Arsenal are strong favourites to secure the Premier League’s fourth spot in next season’s Champions League, neither Antonio Conte nor David Moyes will be giving it up just yet, because both have enough to think they can go on a run.
For Conte, it’s more about the individuals – Harry Kane and Heung-min Son are brilliant, so having them gives you a chance in any game – while for Moyes it’s more about the team – West Ham have both clean sheets and goals in them. And both of them must find a way to win this evening, meaning the rest of us can settle in for what promises to be an affirmingly nasty encounter.
Kick-off: 4.30pm GMT
