Tottenham Hotspur clashed heads with West Ham United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium earlier this evening hoping to return to winning ways in the Premier League. Spurs began the match on the front foot but struggled to open up the Hammers defence. Heung-min Son thought he finally broke the deadlock just before the half-time break, but his goal was ruled out as offside by VAR.
The home team amped-up the pressure in the second 45 minutes and finally went ahead in the 64th minute when West Ham’s Tomáš Souček scored an unfortunate own goal while defending a corner inside his penalty box. Harry Kane made the points secure just 18 minutes later when he found the back of the net with a controlled finish. The contest ended with Jose Mourinho’s men emerging victorious with an impressive 2-0 scoreline at North London.
Let’s take a look at how each Tottenham player fared during the match against the Hammers.
GK: Hugo Lloris – 7/10
The French keeper made an excellent save to deny Michail Antonio from point-blank range midway through the first half. He was relatively untroubled in the second 45 and kept a comfortable clean sheet this evening.
RB: Serge Aurier – 6.5/10
The Spurs full-back was a solid presence defensively throughout the 90 minutes. He got into some promising positions in the opposition half but failed to make a meaningful contribution in the final third.
CB: Davinson Sanchez – 7/10
He was a composed figure at the heart of the Tottenham defence and marshalled his penalty area with authority and conviction. He got a deserved clean sheet to show for his efforts.
CB: Eric Dier – 8/10
The English talent organised the Spurs backline well and did enough to neutralise the threat of Michail Antonio during the game. Overall, it was another impressive showing from him today.
LB: Ben Davies – 8/10
His whipped in crosses caused a lot of headaches for the West Ham defenders in the first half. He was always looking to get forward and was unlucky not to earn an assist for all his efforts.
CM: Moussa Sissoko – 7/10
The Frenchman produced another hardworking display while covering a lot of ground at the centre of the park. It seems like he is slowly getting back to his best.
CM: Giovani Lo Celso – 8/10
He created several inviting goal-scoring chances for his teammates in the opposition half and was the main orchestrator behind Soucek’s own goal after the hour mark.
RM: Lucas Moura – 5.5/10
The ex-Paris Saint-Germain speedster squandered some excellent chances to score in what was a lively yet frustrating display from him this evening.
CAM: Dele Alli – 5/10
The English playmaker struggled to influence the game going forward and was rightfully replaced by Erik Lamela close to the hour mark.
LM: Heung-min Son – 7/10
The South Korean international will be disappointed after his goal got chalked off as offside by VAR. He was exciting on the ball and ended with an assist to his name for setting up Kane’s goal in the second half.
ST: Harry Kane – 7.5/10
The Spurs centre-forward lacked sharpness in the first 45 but was a constant menace for the Hammers after the half-time interval. He squandered some decent goal-scoring opportunities early in the second half before making amends in the 82nd minute as he slotted home the decisive second goal for his team.
Substitutes:
CAM: Erik Lamela – 7/10
The Argentine playmaker was always looking to get the ball and went close to scoring with his effort that saw the ball hit the side net.
LM: Steven Bergwijn – 7/10
He provided some fresh legs and energy down the left flank.
CM: Harry Winks – N/A
He did not have enough time to make an impact.
