Tottenham vs. West Ham
Venue: Tottenham Stadium
Kick off: 4:30PM
Tottenham Hotspur will be looking to build on their incredible victory over Manchester United prior to the international break when they host West Ham United this afternoon
Jose Mourinho’s men thumped Manchester United 6-1 at Old Trafford to climb up to sixth in the Premier League, one point better off than London rivals West Ham, who are also in good form.
If proof was needed as to how quickly the mood can change around a club in the space of just a week, look no further than Tottenham’s run of form before the two-week hiatus.
A 1-1 draw at home to Newcastle United may have been overshadowed by a terrible late penalty call, but that result left serious questions being asked of Mourinho once again.
Within a week of that setback, however, Spurs recorded three victories in a row in three different competitions, scoring 14 goals in the process.
The victory at Old Trafford – Mourinho’s joint-biggest away from home as a Premier League manager – will undoubtedly grab the headlines.
That came on the back of a penalty shootout win over Chelsea to progress in the EFL Cup and a thumping 7-2 home win over Maccabi Haifa to qualify for the Europa League proper.
All appears to be well at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, then, upon this much-anticipated showdown with rivals West Ham this afternoon.
The Hammers also enter this fixture full of confidence, having won back-to-back league games without conceding, either side of an EFL Cup loss to Everton.
United achieved those two wins – 4-0 over Wolverhampton Wanderers and 3-0 against Leicester City – without boss David Moyes in the dugout.
After a prolonged period of self-isolation after testing positive for coronavirus, however, the Scotsman will be back in the dugout this weekend.
Victory against Spurs would make it three league wins in a row for United for the first time in 17 months, while not since 2014 have they won three on the spin without conceding.
However, they lost both league encounters with Tottenham last season and have lost seven of their last nine top-flight London derbies since the start of last season.
After notching three goals past in-form Leicester last time out, though, Moyes’s men will no doubt be looking to put that right with a positive result this afternoon.
Tottenham Hotspur possible XI: Lloris, Aurier, Alderweireld, Sanchez, Reguilon, Hojbjerg, Winks, Ndombele, Lamela, Kane, Son.
West Ham United possible XI: Fabianski, Coufal, Dawson, Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Bowen, Soucek, Rice, Fornals, Antonio.