Tottenham Hotspur welcomed London rivals West Ham United to White Hart Lane this afternoon looking to move level on points with Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table.
The visitors were winless in the top-flight since the opening day of the season, and they frustrated Andre Villas-Boas's Champions League hopefuls with an organised and stubborn first-half defensive display.
After Jermain Defoe had been denied by Jussi Jaaskelainen immediately after the interval, the Hammers shocked Spurs with three goals in 13 minutes, with Winston Reid grabbing the first.
The New Zealand defender smashed the ball in from close range after causing havoc from a corner, and Ricardo Vaz Te soon doubled West Ham's advantage when his shot, originally saved by Hugo Lloris, rebounded off him and over the line.
Ravel Morrison put the icing on the cake for the visitors with an superb run and finish in the 80th-minute, completing a magnificent day's work for the Iron, who claimed their first Premier League win at Tottenham since 1999.
Below, you can read how the action unfolded in the capital.
Afternoon, all! The division's joint-best defence meets the it's joint-worst attack today. But, this is the Premier League, after all, and a London derby, so who knows what's going to happen?
Let's get straight to today's lineups, and there is a surprise change in the Spurs XI, with a name that will be familiar to the visiting West Ham fans handed his first Premier League start of the season.
SPURS: Lloris; Walker, Dawson, Vertonghen, Naughton; Dembele, Paulinho; Townsend, Eriksen, Sigurdsson; Defoe
SUBS: Friedel, Chiriches, Chadli, Holtby, Lamela, Sandro, Soldado
WEST HAM: Jaaskelainen; Demel, Tomkins, Reid, Rat; Noble, Morrison, Nolan; Downing, Diame, Vaz Te
SUBS: Adrian, O'Brien, Collins, Cole, Jarvis, Petric, Maiga
So, it’s as not quite as expected for Spurs, as Jermain Defoe’s consistent scoring in the cup competitions is rewarded with a start against his former club. Roberto Soldado is dropped having yet to score from open play in the Premier League this season.
Defoe scored his seventh goal in five matches in the 2-0 Europa League victory over Anzhi in midweek, for which Paulinho, Jan Vertonghen and Andros Townsend were rested. All three return this afternoon.
Kyle Naughton continues to deputise, slightly out of position, for absent left-back Danny Rose, who should be available again after the international break following a foot problem.
Etienne Capoue, Aaron Lennon and Younes Kaboul are also sidelined, but Spurs have positive news on their fitness too, with all three likely to be back in first-team contention when the domestic season resumes in a fortnight.
Record-signing Erik Lamela, Nacer Chadli, Lewis Holtby, who has impressed when given the opportunity in the Europa League, and Soldado are all included on what is an attack-minded Spurs bench that could rival any in the country.
What Sam Allardyce would give to have Defoe back in the West Ham ranks. None of his strikers have scored this season, and Modibo Maiga has paid the price for his inability to find the net with his place in the team.
Ricardo Vaz Te, who handed in a transfer request at the back end of the summer, is given an opportunity to lead the forward line, with Maiga and new signing Mladen Petric in reserve on the bench. £15m-signing Andy Carroll isn’t nearing a return from the foot injury that has prevented him from featuring as of yet this term.
Vaz Te's inclusion is one of three Hammers changes from the side that lost 1-0 at Hull City last time out. Guy Demel returns at right-back and will play behind fit-again Stewart Downing. Joey O'Brien and Matt Jarvis are the two players that make way.
Local lad James Tomkins has forced his way into Allardyce's team as of late and today he is again preferred to James Collins as Winston Reid's central defensive partner. Passion is key in derby games, and in Tomkins and Mark Noble, the Hammers have two guys who at Claret and Blue, through and through.
Joe Cole is another boyhood Hammer and one who has plenty of London derby experience. He returns from an injury layoff to take a place on the visiting bench this afternoon, against a team that has tried to sign him on several occasions during his playing career.
Gylfi Sigurdsson has scored as many Premier League goals as the West Ham XI combined this season [3]. He is one of those players to have benefitted from the playing time granted to them due to Gareth Bale's departure, and also the link-up with impressive new signing Christian Eriksen.
The Icelandic midfielder broke his Premier League duck for Spurs in their 3-2 win over the Hammers last February and has since gone on to score six times in 15 appearances. Of course, it was Bale, at the peak of his powers who stole the show that night at Upton Park with a memorable late winner.
In-fact, Spurs won both of the top-flight meetings between the two sides last season, triumphing 3-1 at White Hart Lane to add to their victory at the Boleyn Ground. West Ham last beat their London rivals in the Premier League back in September 2010, when Frederic Piquionne scored the only goal of the game.
Around 10 minutes until kickoff now at the Lane, where we hope there will be no unsavoury anti-semetic chanting from the visiting fans. West Ham did plead with their supporters this week not to repeat their songs that offended the Jewish community that is associated closely with Spurs. The 'Y word' certainly is a hot topic in football at the moment.
ONE TO WATCH: Andros Townsend has had a flying start to the season on the Spurs right, and he will be looking to use this opportunity to impress England manager Roy Hodgson ahead of the World Cup qualifying double bill next week. Townsend has been included in the squad and is one of the leading contenders to occupy the right-wing position usually occupied by the injured Theo Walcott.
PREDICTION: With Tottenham’s defence difficult to breach, and West Ham struggling for goals, I only see this match going one way. The margin of the Lillywhites’ victory will likely depend on if they are able to get an early goal, which may bring the Hammers out and leave them exposed to the counter-attack. I’m backing the visitors to make it quite difficult for Spurs, though, who I expect to win by a 2-0 scoreline.
Of course, Tottenham’s North London rivals, Arsenal, are also in action at 4.00pm. They face Manchester United’s conquerors from last week, West Brom in a game you can follow live with Sports Mole. I shall try to keep you updated of goals from The Hawthorns, as and when they go in.
Here we go then. West Ham get us underway at the Lane...
Nolan charges down a short back pass which Lloris boots off the West Ham skipper and out of play for an early throw-in.
We are hearing that Kyle Walker left the field after the Spurs warm up complaining that he was not feeling 100%. Romanian defender Vlad Chiriches has already been asked to warm up by AVB.
Vertonghen superbly pinches the ball from Diame with a well-timed tackle from behind, and he immediately finds the feet of Defoe. He lays the ball back to Sigurdsson, whose return pass is intercepted by Reid.
Rat's long thrown into the box is headed clear to the edge of the box by Walker, and the ball falls kindly to Noble 20 yards out. He gets stuck in two minds and in the end his chip across the area is neither a shot or a cross and the ball rolls harmlessly behind.
Diame makes a strong run cutting in from the left and muscles his way past both Dawson and Paulinho before Vertonghen comes across to help shadow the ball back to Lloris.
Already in these opening stages, there is a clear indication of how West Ham are looking to play. They are operating without a recognised striker, and wingers Downing and Vaz Te are coming inside when they are without the ball to try and restrict the room in the middle of the park and force Spurs to play down the flanks. The visitors have probably had more of the ball thus far, though.
CHANCE! The ball breaks to Downing on the right and he has far too much space to cut back onto his favoured left and drift an inviting ball into the area. Nolan shuffles away from Dawson to get his header away, but can only direct it wide.
Excellent tackle from Tomkins, who comes across to slide in on Paulinho after Sigurdsson's threw pass had put the Brazilian through on goal. He even managed to deflect the ball off the Spurs man to prevent West Ham conceding a corner. Great defending.
SHOT! Townsend comes in from the right and gets a couple of lucky bounces in an endeavouring run to the edge of the area. Sigurdsson takes the ball off him and shoot low towards the bottom right corner, but Jaaskelainen gets down to make a simple save.
After a fairly bright start from West Ham, it is now Spurs who are starting to see plenty of the ball. Eriksen is roaming all over the place in order to try and find space, and he combines with Sigurdsson before Paulinho blazes high into the stands with a 25-yard half volley.
There is a stoppage in play here, with referee Lee Probert insisting that Jaaskelainen requires a change of boots, or left boot to be precise. Quite why, I'm not sure. Meanwhile, Walker takes on some fluids on the sideline. He seems to have shaken off whatever pre-match problem he had.
Dembele and then Paulinho carry the ball forward for Spurs before the latter spreads the play to Townsend, who creates a yard of space to chip a cross in towards Defoe, who is denied a header at goal by Reid's clearance.
More good defending from the Hammers as Tomkins climbs above Paulinho to head clear a flighted Eriksen cross. Tottenham's Brazilian midfielder is involved in everything that they do.
SHOT! Townsend again comes inside off the left, but this time he gets a shot away himself, a 25-yard effort that looks to be threatening Jaaskelainen's top corner before it swerves a few metres wide.
Superb delivery from deep by Downing, one which would have Andy Carroll salivating and Spurs nervous, should they Geordie frontman be playing. In his absence, it is Diame that attacks the cross, but with little conviction and the ball bounces off him and behind.
It appeared that Defoe was in on goal for the first time in the contest, but the assistant referee's flag denies the pacey frontman, who just went a little early with his run off the Spurs right
CHANCE! Townsend displays his dribbling prowess again and he runs past both Noble and Rat before chipping the ball back to Paulinho 15 yards out. The Brazilian's first touch is excellent and sets him up for a volley which he guides just wide of the post.
CHANCE! Set pieces may be West Ham's best source of goalscoring chances this afternoon, and Reid shows why as he jumps above Vertonghen, but glances his header a few yards wide. He should have done better.
Outstanding stuff from Townsend, who is giving watching England boss Roy Hodgson some food for thought. He pounces on a slip from Nolan to get the loose ball and then sprint past Rat before fizzing a low cross in which just evades Defoe. Any contact, from him or Tomkins, and West Ham were in trouble.
Morrison seems to be the most advanced of West Ham's midfielders, and Diame, after he cleverly turned away from Dembele and embarked on a surging run, released him down the right channel. Lloris is typically rapid off his line and clears the danger, with the assistant flagging for offside anyway.
CHANCE! Eriksen finally engineers some space for himself in the West Ham third, and he flicks the ball towards Sigurdsson, who cleverly lets the ball run for Paulinho. Demel comes across to put pressure on the Brazilian, who gets a shot with his weaker left foot horribly wrong.
Dawson gets himself into a bit of a tangle as he allows a punt forward to bounce and Morrison stretches out a foot to beat him to the second ball. There is only one West Ham body in the box, and Morrison cannot find him as Dawson recovers to make the interception.
UPDATE! No breakthrough as Spurs for yet, but there is some good news for fans of the Lillywhites. Claudio Yacob has given West Brom the lead against Arsenal in the Midlands.
CLOSE! It's nearly a superbly-worked set piece from the Hammers, as Noble dinks a free kick over the Spurs wall for Nolan to run onto. The hosts are caught a bit off guard and the West Ham skipper tries to guide a volley across goal. Lloris is beaten, but the ball drifts wide of the post. That's probably the best chance of the match so far.
Spurs counter and Defoe takes up a position in the left channel. He cuts inside to try and get a shot away on his right foot, but there are too many bodies in the way and in the end his attempted pass to Sigurdsson is blocked off by Reid.
Townsend sparkles in the three minutes of first-half stoppage time, firstly playing a beautiful reverse pass for Sigurdsson to cross, which was diverted behind by Reid. The lightning-quick winger then fools Diame with a superb turn and stands up a cross which just misses Defoe, the only Spurs body in the box.
HALF TIME: Spurs 0-0 West Ham
No breakthrough as yet for Spurs, who have been frustrated by some excellent defending from the visitors, and a West Ham side that have set up to deny them any room in the middle of the park.
Tottenham's most creative player, Christian Eriksen has been tightly marked and closed down as soon as he has received the ball. The Hammers have invited the hosts to play down the flanks, and although the excellent Townsend has prospered on the right, not enough white shirts have been in the box to get on the end of them.
STATS: Unsurprisingly, it is Andre Villas-Boas's side that have had more of the possession, with 58%, but they have only registered one shot on target - a tame Gylfi SIgurdsson strike from 20 yards. The Hammers are yet to test Hugo Lloris, but do look a threat from set pieces.
BENCH WATCH: If Spurs need a change, then they have plenty of options on the bench. Erik Lamela may be turned to first, but there is also the creative influence of Lewis Holtby, or of course, the dropped Roberto Soldado. West Ham have Joe Cole and Matt Jarvis as options should Sam Allardyce want to freshen up on the wing, while Mladen Petric could get the call late on if the Hammers boss feels his side could nick all three points.
Spurs resume the action at the Lane, with both sides unchanged...
SAVE! Fantastic chance for Tottenham 20 seconds after the interval. West Ham had not even had time to shape up properly when Eriksen releases Paulinho through the middle. The Brazilian plays in Defoe, whose low poke is saved well by the legs of Jaaskelainen.
Paulinho is again in an advanced position, but Reid forces him away from goal before clumsily pushing him to the floor. Free kick for Tottenham in a promising position...
Superb delivery from Eriksen from the set piece. Jaaskelainen comes out to claim but is beaten by the flight and dip of the cross, which Dawson cannot squeeze inside the post at the far stick.
Vertonghen takes two West Ham players out of the game with a backheel to Townsend, who is this time muscled off the ball by Reid as he once again attempted to cut inside off the right.
SAVE! Defoe forces Jaaskelainen into a smart save, as the Finn tips a 20-yard drive from the England international over his crossbar. Paulinho again involved in the build up.
SAVE! Tomkins climbs highest at the back post to head goalwards, but Lloris gets his angles right and punches the ball away, even with the lurking Nolan blocking his eye line.
This is a much more open second half, and although West Ham have enjoyed the better of the last few minutes, which included a blocked Razvan Rat shot, that may suit Spurs, who will thrive will the space that comes as a result of a stretched encounter.
Record-signing Erik Lamela is limbering up on the touchline and is indeed now stripped and ready to go. Villas-Boas will be looking for the £30m to make his first real impact in a Tottenham shirt.
Optimistic appeals by West Ham for a penalty are turned down by referee Probert. Diame went down under the challenge of Dembele, but the Belgian got plenty enough of the ball.
SUBSTITUTION: Here comes that Spurs change, and it is Sigurdsson brought off to make way for Lamela, who will start on the left flank despite being more accustomed to the right.
UPDATE! There is another goal at The Hawthorns and it is an Arsenal equaliser, as Jack Wilshere strikes for his first of the season. Can Spurs follow their London rivals onto the scoresheet?
GOAL! Spurs 0-1 West Ham (Reid)
I did warn you that the Hammers are looking dangerous from set pieces! Downing's delivery is an excellent one to the back post, where Reid climbs highest to head downwards. His effort is originally blocked by his teammate Nolan, and the rebound falls for Reid to smash home.
Can Tottenham respond? They were already struggling to break through a compact West Ham formation, and you get the feeling that the visitors will pack the middle of the park and sit back even more now.
GOAL! Spurs 0-2 West Ham (Vaz Te)
West Ham are on course for a fantastic win, and it is Ricardo Vaz Te, who had asked to leave the club just over a month ago, who looks to have wrapped the result up for them. Noble releases him in the left channel, and Walker is nowhere to be seen as the Portuguese forward prods the ball at Lloris, who saves well, only for the rebound to bounce off Vaz Te and into the net. Another slice of luck for the Hammers, but Allardyce will claim that it's about time!
SUBSTITUTION: Villas-Boas throws on another striker in the form of Roberto Soldado, who replaces the ineffective Christian Eriksen. That's £56m worth of talent off the Spurs bench this afternoon. Can the big-money signings inspire an unlikely comeback?
CHANCE! Townsend fools his marker by feigning to pass inside before turning and sprinting away down the right. He crosses for Paulinho, whose tame header is straight into the gloves of Jaaskelainen. Holtby is ready and waiting on the touchline...
GOAL! Spurs 0-3 West Ham (Morrison)
Incredible scenes at White Hart Lane, and an incredible individual goal by Ravel Morrison! Diame turns well and cleverly shifts the ball onto Morrison, who drives, from the halfway line, to the edge of the Spurs box. He holds off the challenge of Vertonghen, and then skips past Dawson far too easily, before poking the ball under Luiz and just about over the line.
SUBSTITUTIONS: Villas-Boas swaps Naughton for Holtby, but surely it is too late for Spurs to mount any sort of comeback. Allardyce replaces the tireless Diame with an extra defender in the form of James Collins. Three at the back for the Hammers.
There is a mini scramble in the box and Soldado is lurking at the back post. His shot across goal is deflected behind, but Spurs appear a bit taken aback by this scoreline, and they aren't the only ones!
SUBSTITUTION: Joe Cole makes his return to action for this final five minutes, replacing one of the scorers Vaz Te, who has helped the Hammers net more goals today than Tottenham had previously conceded all season.
West Ham aren't finished yet, they are seeking a fourth! Noble travels with the ball through the middle and perhaps should have thread Cole through down the left. Instead, he shifts the ball wide to Downing, who cuts inside and bends a shot high and wide of the far post.
SUBSTITUTION: Noble seems to have picked up a knock late on, or perhaps it is a spot of cramp, but either way he is spared the last few minutes as Joey O'Brien comes on in his place.
We are now in the second minute of FOUR in stoppage time, and West Ham are coasting, really enjoying themselves. Spurs cannot get the ball off them.
Free kick for Spurs 25 yards out, chance for a consolation perhaps? No, as Holtby's strike deflects off the wall and behind for a corner. That might just about be that.
FULL TIME: Tottenham Hotspur 0-3 West Ham United
Did anybody else not expect that? West Ham produced a fantastic, and clinical second-half display to come away from White Hart Lane with victory over their London rivals. Spurs enjoyed the better of the opening 45 minutes, but were seemingly rocked by Winston Reid's opener, and Ricardo Vaz Te and Ravel Morrison added to the scores to give the winning margin a convincing look.
That's it from me for this afternoon, and for the Premier League for nearly a fortnight. Be sure to check back in with Sports Mole later this evening for some analysis on just quite how West Ham pulled this off! Thanks for joining us today.
Written by
Joe Fish
Joe Fish
