Andriy Yarmolenko the unsung hero, Ogbonna “assist” for Lanzini stunner & more- Talking Points from Tottenham 3-3 West Ham

Manuel Lanzini scored a fantastic 94th minute goal of the season contender as West Ham produced a stunning comeback at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium against Jose Mourinho’s Spurs on Sunday evening. Here are our talking points from this GW5 clash.

Andriy Yarmolenko the unsung hero:

Yarmolenko had a massive impact off the bench- it was he who set up Vladimir Coufal with a lovely pass in the move that eventually saw Davinson Sanchez score an own goal to make it 3-2.

We’ve often criticised the Ukrainian for his lack of defensive work, but his tracking back for Gareth Bale’s 91st minute chance was fanastic. Aaron Cresswell seemed to have given up, and Bale was one on one with Lukasz Fabianski after having got past Angelo Ogbonna with ease, but in came Yarmolenko, who had sprinted past Cresswell, and he put Bale off balance just enough for the Welsh star to squander his chance.

Ogbonna “assist” helps West Ham

Another moment, perhaps as important as Yarmolenko’s defensive intervention, came from Angelo Ogbonna. He effectively blocked the onrushing Harry Winks just as Lanzini was about to take his 94th minute shot, and gave the Argentine just that extra bit of space and time. It will not go down as an assist in the books, but it was as good as one. [Read more…]

Diop & Antonio among West Ham players named in Premier League Team of the Week for Round 36

It’s been a while since we saw a West Ham player in one of these lists- perhaps not surprising given the club’s indifferent form over the last few weeks. However the Hammers’ shock 1-0 win over Spurs on Saturday afternoon, which made them the first team to win at the new Tottenham Stadium, saw a number of strong performances, and several players have been rewarded with spots in the Team of the Week for GW36.

There’s a West Ham player in virtually every pundit’s Team of the Week bar Robbie Savage’s. Issa Diop, who was re-united with Fabian Balbuena in the centre of defence, and Michail Antonio, who scored the winner, were the most prominent ones, but there was room for a few other players as well.

Sol Bamba Team of the Week for Round 36 (Sky)

Bamba’s team of the week had a spot for Michail Antonio [Read more…]

Diop and Balbuena re-united, First team to win at New Spurs Stadium & More- Talking Points from Tottenham v West Ham

West Ham became the first visiting team to win at the new Spurs stadium as they secured their first away league triumph of 2019 on Saturday afternoon. Michail Antonio’s fine finish midway through the second half gave the Hammers all three points against Mauricio Pochettino’s men.

Here are our talking points from the game.

Balbuena and Diop re-united: After a long time, Fabian Balbuena and Issa Diop together played as a central defensive pair. The pairing between the Paraguayan and the young French star has been one of the bright points of West Ham’s season, and they were fantastic today as the Hammers secured a rare clean sheet. Balbuena denied Vincent Janssen a late equaliser with his clearance off the line, while Diop almost scored a great individual goal, striding from his own half into the opposition box, but was denied by Lloris.

Angelo Ogbonna has his moments, but tends to be inconsistent. Balbuena and Diop are clearly the way forward.

First away team to win at the New Spurs stadium: West Ham became the first away team to win at the new Spurs stadium, and Antonio’s goal was the first the Lilywhites have conceded at this ground. Nice little pub trivia stat in favour of the Hammers, who were also the first team to win against Arsenal at the Emirates.

All the more remarkable given that the Hammers had taken just one point from 8 league games on the road prior to this clash. [Read more…]

Tottenham vs West Ham Predictions- What do the pundits think of the Hammers’ chances?

West Ham will be looking to become the first team to take points off Tottenham Hotspur at their new stadium when the two teams do battle on Saturday afternoon. Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino will have one eye on their upcoming Champions League semi-final against Ajax, but will also be aware that a loss here could give their rivals renewed hope in the top four race. The third place Lilywhites hold a three point advantage over fourth place Chelsea, who will be squaring off against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Man Utd this weekend.

The Hammers lost the reverse fixture earlier this season, although Spurs could perhaps count themselves lucky to emerge with all three points on that occasion.

Let’s take a look at what the pundits have to say about this GW36 clash.

Mark Lawrenson: Lawro notes that the midweek results worked out perfectly for Spurs- they beat Brighton while United and Arsenal both lost. Feels West Ham “carry a threat but are inconsistent” and backs Mauricio Pochettino’s men to win 2-1. [Read more…]

Referee announced for West Ham Tottenham Carabao Cup clash- Spurs unbeaten this decade under him!

The referee for Wednesday evening’s EFL Cup clash between West Ham and Tottenham at the London Stadium has been announced, and it’s Stuart Attwell, who also presided over the Hammers’ 2-1 loss at home to Bournemouth in the second week of the Premier League back in August.

West Ham are winless in their last three games under Attwell- apart from the loss to the Cherries mentioned above, they were also beaten 4-1 at Anfield in February and drew 1-1 with Burnley in October last year. Attwell has refereed five Premier League games so far in this 18/19 season- West Ham were the only home team to lose. [Read more…]