West Ham's electric Boleyn Ground win sets up season-defining north London derby for Tottenham and Arsenal
ANOTHER wintry night and another gilded memory to burnish Upton Park’s fabulous Long Goodbye.
Along with the noise and the fervour and the emotion which electrified the chilly air here, West Ham played quite superbly on Wednesday night and Tottenham’s championship charge was halted in its tracks after six straight wins.
What more could the home fans have asked from the final derby visit of one of their club’s most fierce London rivals?
Against Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and now Tottenham this season, Slaven Bilic’s players have fashioned some of the most notable occasions of recent years at this fabulous old place, which really ought to stand forever as one of the world’s great folk citadels of the glory game.
It can’t and that hurts its people so much even though they know that change is necessary. To help send them on their way with fire in their hearts, this was another night when the team played with all the drive, desire and energy the supporters could have asked for. And now, some of them are even begin to wonder if they will be witnessing Champions League football in the first campaign at the Olympic Stadium later this year.
This is a title race which is twisting, turning and surprising all the way towards its Spring conclusion. West Ham have typified the revolution of the middle-ranking clubs who are having so much influence on the tussle at the top.
So perhaps it fitted the pattern that Spurs suddenly lost their way as soon as they were offered the opportunity to over-take the leaders, Leicester – and were beaten by Michail Antonio’s headed goal after only seven minutes.
This was no choke from Mauricio Pochettino’s side, however. It hurts and it is damaging and Leicester’s boss, Claudio Ranieri, must have begun believing that fate really is on his side.
But unlike their greatest enemies, Arsenal, who had succumbed so feebly in their test at Manchester United the previous Sunday and then were calamitously beaten by Swansea, something simply caught up with Tottenham on this raucous evening in east London.
Indeed, they were not facing a makeshift team sprinkled with kids as Arsenal did at Old Trafford. No, West Ham were “at it,” here – as this season’s parlance has it. They are muscular and quick and committed in the modern way of the Premier League and so, inflamed by the sense of occasion, they ripped into Spurs from the start.
Tottenham never really expected to be in the mix-up when this campaign began, again unlike the Gunners. True enough, they were over-run in the first-half by a rampant West Ham team and only roused themselves a little after the break.
But it seemed clear they were weary and empty on a physical level. Harry Kane’s inability to make any headway against the Hammers three-man defence illustrated that clearly, as did the way he snatched lethargically at two second-half opportunities.
Against a side as strong, quick, energetic and committed as these high-flying Hammers, that kind of tiredness was always going to count. Pochettino’s game is based on intense fitness but it cannot always dominate. Other teams are fit and strong, too. Sometimes, something has to give.
It wasn’t their spirit that failed at the Boleyn Ground simply their bodies. And, judging by the evidence of how aggressively Spurs and Arsenal have attacked the task before them this Spring, you would now fancy Tottenham to recover more powerfully in the crunch north London derby at White Hart Lane on Saturday.
This emphasis on Tottenham’s physical condition isn’t meant in any way to detract from what West Ham achieved here, though. As they dominated the first-half, the impish talents of the wonderful Dimitri Payet once again lifted the ground to fresh heights of adulation. Once again, they were led outstandingly by the skipper, Mark Noble.
Bilic’s side moved the ball quickly and attractively and really ought to have been further in front by half-time.
When Spurs began to edge a pathway into the game after the break, West Ham remained calm and their concentration levels remained sound. This was a sign of a team playing with real belief and self-confidence as they mount a twin assault on qualification for Europe and the FA Cup.
Bilic’s decision to play three across the centre of defence nullified Spurs up front and West Ham worked so hard farther up the pitch that Tottenham had sparse possession until the second-half.
After Tottenham’s brief revival, West Ham finished the game hunting a second, with the stadium rocking with uproarious glee all around them.
On the touchline, Bilic was as animated as the fans, which is why they have formed such a bond with him during this uplifting final season here.
This ensured a raucous finish along Green Street.
It will surely be more tense, edgy and brooding when Spurs attempt to recover at White Hart Lane on Saturday. In one enormous derby, it could define the season for Tottenham and Arsenal.
ArticleWest Ham win sets up season-defining derby for Spurs and ArsenalPremier LeagueTottenham HotspurArsenalWest Ham UnitedLeicester City