Tottenham Hotspur moved back into the Premier League’s top four with a workmanlike 2-0 win over West Ham United in North London on Sunday.
Scoreless at the break, Spurs found their way to the scoresheet through Emerson Royal and super sub Heung-min Son, boosting the club back into the top four with 42 points. That’s one more than Newcastle.
WATCH TOTTENHAM vs WEST HAM FULL MATCH REPLAY STREAM – LINK
West Ham continues to languish in the bottom three, as David Moyes’ conservative tactics didn’t come close to panning out in a positive manner unless you count the halftime deadlock.
West Ham’s 20 points are one behind 16th-place Everton and 17th-place Bournemouth. Nottingham Forest is next on the menu for Moyes’ men, who have 14 matches left on their Premier League docket.
[ MORE: How to watch Premier League in USA ]
Spurs take workmanlike lead, get top-four footing
Tottenham only had to worry about one thing for most of this match and that was finding a way through West Ham’s defending-first shape and tactics.
Spurs’ first avenue arrived through the unlikely pairing of marauding Ben Davies and fullback Emerson Royal, who combined for an aesthetically-pleasing goal in the 75th minute.
Then it was much more familiar, as Heung-min Son came off the bench to find a bit of form after Harry Kane made the most of a 50-50 with Angelo Ogbonna.
Game. Set. Match. Welcome back to the top four, Tottenham.
David Moyes didn’t even try for three points for 70+ minutes
There are a lot of West Ham talents to admire, but almost all of the attack-minded ones were kept on the bench for well over an hour in North London.
Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen led the way for a super scrappy group of field players already missing Maxwel Cornet and Lucas Paqueta as options.
It was a lot of respect to show a Spurs team with plenty of talent but not exactly an in-form reputation, a unit also missing Rodrigo Betancur and Hugo Lloris. David Moyes left Danny Ings, Gianluca Scamacca, Pablo Fornals, Said Benrahma, and Manuel Lanzini — not to mention forward-thinking crosser Aaron Cresswell on the bench.
West Ham had limited Spurs to 0.93 expected goals by the time Ings was being readied for arrival but had produced just 0.24 xG and a total of four shots. It made this thing snoozier than it should’ve been at THS.
Tottenham vs West Ham player ratings: Stars of the Show
Harry Kane
Cristian Romero
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg
Tomas Soucek
Declan Rice
What’s next?
West Ham goes to Nottingham Forest at 10am ET Saturday before a midweek FA Cup clash with Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Tottenham awaits Chelsea for an 8:30am ET Sunday clash just as tasty as the day’s League Cup Final between Manchester United and Newcastle United.
Emerson Royal goal video: Unlikely duo cues up Spurs opener
Heung-min Son goal video: Kane cues up South Korean super sub
How to watch Tottenham vs West Ham live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 11:30 am ET, Sunday
TV channel: USA Network
Online: Stream via NBCSports.com
Key storylines & star players
From beating Manchester City to suffering a 4-1 humiliation at the hands of Leicester just six days later, last week perfectly encapsulated Spurs’ roller-coaster season. Harry Kane became the club’s all-time record goal scorer on Sunday, then Tottenham went 1-0 ahead before conceding four straight goals and losing Rodrigo Bentancur for the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Antonio Conte is also once again absent following a setback in his recovery from gallbladder surgery, putting Cristian Stellini back in charge for Sunday’s derby.
On the other side, West Ham is the only club currently in the bottom-six yet to make a managerial change this season, leaving many to wonder each and every week if it will be David Moyes’ last in charge. The Hammers have a bit of momentum amid a three-game unbeaten run (victory over Everton, followed by back-to-back draws with Newcastle and Chelsea), though they are winless in their last four trips to north London (0W-1D-3L).
Tottenham team news, injuries, lineup options
OUT: Rodrigo Bentancur (torn ACL – out for season), Hugo Lloris (knee), Yves Bissouma (ankle), Ryan Sessegnon (thigh)
Our team to face West Ham ✊ pic.twitter.com/LB78bmi9yP
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) February 19, 2023
West Ham team news, injuries, lineup options
OUT: Lucas Paqueta (shoulder), Maxwel Cornet (calf), Kurt Zouma (thigh), Gianluca Scamacca (knee)
Our starting XI to take on Spurs ⚒️ pic.twitter.com/Arl0Tziupz
— West Ham United (@WestHam) February 19, 2023
