Tottenham Hotspur take on West Ham United in must-win London derby

Saturday’s Premier League action gets underway in North London as Tottenham Hotspur seek amends for a disappointing start to the season against cross-capital rivals West Ham United.

Despite Ange Postecoglou’s ambitious statement in the summer, saying he always wins things in his second year, Spurs have stuttered at the beginning of 2024/25.

Postecoglou vowed to ‘explode’ at his players, per Optus Sport, after an unfathomable 3-2 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion on the stroke of October’s international break.

Goals from Brennan Johnson and James Maddison inspired Tottenham to a comfortable-looking two-goal cushion at half-time, only for the Seagulls to bag three unanswered goals in the second half.

A morale-wracking result at the Amex Stadium perhaps best outlined Spurs’ notorious problems in inconsistent performances, following up a thumping 3-0 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

Must-Win Fixture

If Postecoglou is to live up to his pre-season promise, three points against West Ham are imperative following an underwhelming Premier League start.

Brighton’s win condemned Tottenham to their worst seven-game start in England’s top flight in 16 years, casting doubt on their effort to better last season’s fifth-place finish.

However, Spurs have fared reasonably well at home this season.

Except for a frustrating 1-0 defeat to Arsenal in mid-September, they’ve won all three remaining home matches via multiple-goal margins, netting at least three goals on each occasion.

Troubled History

Tottenham carry a favourite tag into this contest but can ill-afford to take anything for granted, considering the recent history of this match-up.

West Ham toppled Spurs 2-1 in this corresponding fixture in 2023/24 to make it three undefeated league encounters against Postecoglou’s team in the last four.

It’s also worth noting that Tottenham couldn’t score more than once in each winless outing in that sequence.

Tottenham Potential Starting XI

(4-2-3-1): Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Kulusevski, Bentancur, Maddison; Johnson, Solanke, Son