Tottenham Hotspur will entertain West Ham United in the new year’s first London derby at Wembley Stadium on Thursday night. Both teams come into this contest after bagging all three points in their last league outing on Tuesday night. West Ham showed character to come from behind to see off their relegation rivals West Bromwich Albion through an injury-time winner by Andy Carroll while Tottenham overcame horrid conditions to secure a hard-fought 2-0 victory away at Swansea City.
It is expected to be a highly entertaining contest where both sides will be confident about their chances of securing victory in the derby. The Hammers has had a change in fortunes of late with David Moyes at the helm while Mauricio Pochettino’s Spurs are on a terrific run and boasts one of the best goal-scorers in world football in the form of Harry Kane. Kane was rested and only played 22 minutes against the Swans so it is expected that he will start for the home team after his two successive hattricks to end 2017 with a bang.
David Moyes is expected to opt for a 3-4-2-1 formation to counter Mauricio Pochettino’s 4-2-3-1 in the London derby which makes it a great tactical battle as well. The recent history of the match makes a mixed reading for both London clubs with the Hammers winning three and losing three of their last six encounters with the Spurs. A victory could help Tottenham close the gap to fourth-placed Liverpool to just one point while the Hammers can secure some breathing space between themselves and the relegation zone if they can manage to pull off an upset on Thursday night.
Team News
Tottenham Hotspur:
Toby Alderweireld and Vincent Janssen remain long-term casualties for Tottenham while Mousa Dembélé and Danny Rose are major doubts for the game. However, Harry Kane should return to the starting line-up which would be a huge boost for Pochettino’s Spurs.
West Ham United:
Sam Byram, Edimilson Fernandes, Jose Fonte and Robert Snodgrass are all out of the clash while Michail Antonio, Diafra Sakho and James Collins are major doubts for the game.
Predicted Lineups
Tottenham Hotspur:
Hugo Lloris (C), Serge Aurier, Davinson Sanchez, Jan Vertonghen, Ben Davies, Eric Dier, Moussa Sissoko, Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli, Son Heung-min, Harry Kane.
West Ham United:
Adrian, Winston Reid, Angelo Ogbonna, Aaron Cresswell, Mark Noble, Cheikhou Kouyaté, Pablo Zabaleta, Arthur Masuaku, Manuel Lanzini, Marko Arnautovic, Javier Hernandez.
Key Men:
For Tottenham, it will once again be up to their front four of Harry Kane, Dele Alli, Christian Eriksen and Son Heung-min to score the goals for Spurs.
West Ham United will be dependent on Manuel Lanzini and Marko Arnautovic to do all the damage for the Hammers.
Odds:
Tottenham Hotspur Win: 1/3
Draw: 26/5
West Ham United Win: 45/4
