West Ham—Tottenham Hotspur Preview

West Ham vs Tottenham Hotspur


Sunday 23 August 2009

Upton Park

Kick-Off: 13:30

West Ham

Gianfranco Zola will be pleased with the start West Ham have made to their 2009/10 season, as West Ham won their opening match 2-0 away against newly promoted Wolverhampton.

Mark Noble has carried his good form from the U21 European Championships right into the West Ham side as he scored the first of two goals for the Hammers.

Carlton Cole will also be a key figure for Zola’s side as he will be looking to wreak the same havoc he inflicted on Wolves. His strength and ability to hold the ball up for his midfielders was the determining factor on Saturday and Zola will be expecting more of the same.

Robert Green made a number of sharp saves from Nenad Milijas and Sylvan Ebanks-Blake on Saturday and he will need to remain on top of his game against a dangerous Spurs attack.

Tottenham

Tottenham Hotspur have real reason to be encouraged by the start of their Premier League campaign as they find themselves top of the table after their first two matches.

Harry Redknapp’s men followed up a solid 2-1 home win against Liverpool with an absolute thrashing of Hull City on Wednesday. The North London club hammered five goals past a dazed Hull City side as they marched their way to the top of the table with the 5-1 win.

Jermain Defoe is quite possibly the hottest striker in England at the moment as he followed up his two-goal performance with the national team by nailing a hat-trick against Hull.

Carlo Cudicini will likely start in net in place of Heurelho Gomes, who injured his thigh in the match against Hull.

Ledley King could return for Spurs having been rested in midweek. Alan Hutton replaced King as the only change made by Redknapp to the side that faced Liverpool on Saturday.

Prediction

Last season's West Ham vs. Tottenham encounter saw the Spurs run away 2-0 victors, whilst Spurs also managed to take the reverse fixture at White Hart Lane 1-0.

However, this matchup tends to be a very close affair. In the last fourteen Premier League matches played between the sides at Upton Park, West Ham have won six, drawn three and lost five. This match may very well follow trend and be another tight encounter.

Tottenham have proven their firepower up front and the depth to their striking options is quite impressive (Jermain Defoe, Robbie Keane, Peter Crouch, Roman Pavlyuchenko). West Ham’s defence will have to be alert to keep Spurs off the scoresheet.

The game will most likely be won in the midfield where the efficiency of West Ham defensive midfielder Scott Parker could play a key role in the success of Hammers. Either way, this will be the first London derby of the season, and so expect the tackles to come flying in from all angles.

West Ham vs. Tottenham Prediction: West Ham 1-1 Tottenham

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