Tottenham v West Ham: tips, odds, betting preview & TV details

TV: Sky Sports Premier League & Main Event, 12.30pm Saturday

West Ham are the fifth side to try to escape from Tottenham's new stadium with a positive result and they could succeed where Crystal Palace, Manchester City, Huddersfield and Brighton have failed.

Spurs have won all four matches to nil since leaving Wembley and another victory would put them on the brink of securing a place in next season's Champions League, which will have been the primary ambition for Mauricio Pochettino at the start of the campaign.

This season's Champions League, however, could quite easily be at the forefront of Tottenham's thinking, and if minds start to wander towards Tuesday's semi-final first leg against Ajax the Hammers may throw a spanner in the works.

Motivation won't be a problem for the mid-table visitors, particularly after losing twice at home to their London rivals this season.

This is the match they look forward more than any other and as Robert Snodgrass told West Ham's official website: "It's Spurs and if you’re not motivated for that, there’s no point in turning up."

Talk is cheap but the Hammers have backed it up on their recent visits to play Spurs at the old White Hart Lane or Wembley.

West Ham have avoided defeat on six of their last nine trips to Tottenham, which is a decent effort given the usual disparity between them in the table.

David Moyes masterminded a League Cup triumph for the Hammers at Wembley last season and they nearly did the Spurs away double, only for a late Heung-Min Son thunderbolt to level matters late in the league game.

Son should start for Spurs as he is suspended against Ajax, but picking the rest of the team won't be easy for Pochettino, who does not have the biggest of squads and turned to Vincent Janssen off the bench for the first time since May 2017 in Tuesday's 1-0 victory against Brighton.

That game needed a last-gasp moment of magic from Christian Eriksen to separate the sides and with Harry Kane sidelined it is more of a grind for Spurs in the final third.

Eriksen, Dele Alli or Son are capable of turning a game in an instant, although if West Ham defend properly they can cause problems and they were unfortunate to lose 2-1 at Manchester United on their last away trip.

Defence is West Ham's issue as they have conceded at least twice in each of their last six matches, but they will have an advantage in the freshness stakes as Spurs have played six matches in April compared to the Hammers' three.

Manuel Pellegrini's capable visitors are worth backing to stay competitive.

Premier League standings

Recommendation
West Ham +1.25 on Asian handicap
1pt 47-50 bet365, RedZone

Bet on this game at Soccerbase.com

Team news
Tottenham
Mauricio Pochettino must decide whether to rest players for Tuesday's clash with Ajax. Harry Kane, Serge Aurier, Erik Lamela, Harry Winks and Moussa Sissoko remain sidelined.

West Ham
Jack Wilshere, Manuel Lanzini and Javier Hernandez have been declared fit. Andy Carroll, Winston Reid, Samir Nasri and Andriy Yarmolenko are out.

Key stat
West Ham have scored on their last eight visits to Tottenham.

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