Tottenham’s plan to narrow the lead on Aston Villa, who sits in fourth place, was thwarted when West Ham managed to secure a 1-1 standoff in a captivating derby in London.

West Ham were without their usual goalkeeper, Alphonse Areola, because he had a groin injury, so Lukasz Fabianski took his place in goal. Kalvin Phillips didn’t start the game and was instead listed as a substitute.

While Tottenham brought Micky van de Ven back into the first team after he recovered from a hamstring injury. Dejan Kulusevski and Pape Sarr were given a break, allowing Rodrigo Bentancur and Brennan Johnson to join the starting squad.

The Spurs managed to get on the scoreboard early, with Brennan Johnson netting a goal within the first five minutes, capitalizing shortly after Jarrod Bowen failed to convert a prime opportunity for West Ham. 

However, the Hammers responded when Kurt Zouma found the net with a header from a corner, with no Spurs defender marking him.

West Ham had a great chance to take the lead in the second half, but Tottenham’s goalie, Guglielmo Vicario, made a good save to stop Konstantinos Mavropanos’ shot following a corner kick.

Later, Michail Antonio had an excellent opportunity to score when he was one-on-one with the Vicario, but he didn’t make the most of it and ended up shooting the ball directly at the Italian keeper.

In the closing minutes of the game, both teams had chances to clinch the victory. 

Destiny Udogie shot the ball directly at West Ham’s goalkeeper, Lukasz Fabianski, from close range, and Jarrod Bowen missed the target, shooting past the far post of Tottenham’s goal. In the end, neither team could score the deciding goal.

After the game, Tottenham are now just two points behind Aston Villa, who will play against Manchester City on Wednesday. They also have a nine-point lead over Manchester United, who are in sixth place and will go up against Chelsea on Thursday. West Ham stays in seventh place, following Newcastle’s tie with Everton.

Collins Nwokolo