Prediction: Tottenham vs West Ham

Verdict: Tottenham win and both teams to score

Best Odds: 15/8

Bookmaker: Bet365

With both sides playing their second game in 48 hours, Thursday night will see two sides currently involved in their own individual battles at different ends of the table. Securing their third consecutive win away at Swansea on Tuesday night, Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino will be desperate to close the gap on the top four. While David Moyes will be looking to carry on his sides recent resurgent form and potentially move four points adrift of the drop zone.

Tottenham

For Spurs, the Lilywhites continued on their rampant form since losing 4-1 to runaway league leaders Manchester City last month. On Tuesday night, Pochettino’s side secured a 2-0 win away at Swansea and have now embarked on a three-match winning run. Seeing off Burnley and Southampton prior to their visit to south Wales, Tottenham currently sit fifth in the table. Desperate to secure a top four finish come May, a win for Spurs on Thursday night may not move them into the top four, but, it will move them just a point away from Liverpool in fourth. For Tottenham, although they may have previously struggled to adjust to life at Wembley, Pochettino’s side have now only lost once in their last 29 home appearances. Scoring 10 goals in their last three appearances, England striker Harry Kane will be looking to start the new year how he ended the last. With 18 Premier League goals already this campaign, the 24-year-old is the top scorer in the league.

Team News

While Premier League top scorer Harry Kane is expected to be recalled to Tottenham’s XI on Thursday. However, defender Danny Rose is likely to be missing again and suffering a muscle injury. Rose will be assessed prior to kick-off after damaging the knee which forced him to miss the start of the season.

Ghanian international Victor Wanyama could make his first Premier League start in over four months.

West Ham

Although the Hammers may have left it late, the east London side carried on their recent fine run of form on Tuesday night. Trailing to West Brom until the 60th minute, an Andy Carroll brace helped Moyes’ team pick up three crucial points. With the former Manchester United boss taking charge in November, David Moyes appears to be adapting well to life at the Olympic Stadium. Despite only picking up a single point in their first four games under their new boss, the Hammers have now only lost one top-flight match in their last six. Their 2-1 home victory over the Baggies on Tuesday has seen West Ham move out of the drop zone. Currently sat 16th in the table, Moyes’ side still remain only a single points abover the relegation zone. However, with this being their game in hand, a shock victory for the Hammers on Thursday will see them climb as high as 11th.

Team News

West Ham have a host of injury worries for their trip to Wembley. Defender Aaron Cresswell had to go off against West Brom with a back problem on Tuesday, while Michail Antonio remains a doubt with a groin injury. Andre Ayew has been struggling with a tight hamstring and after returning from his loan in Germany, Reece Oxford sprained an ankle in training.

Diafra Sakho, James Collins, Jose Fonte and Sam Byram are also among the absentees.

Key Factors to Consider

• Tottenham won the reverse fixture 3-2 at the London Stadium, but haven’t won both league meetings with West Ham in a season since the 2012-13 campaign.
• West Ham have only won one of their last 15 away league visits to Tottenham (D5 L9).
• The last seven meetings between these sides in all competitions with Spurs as the home side have produced 29 goals, at an average of 4.1 per game.
• Spurs have lost just once in their last 29 home Premier League games (W23 D5 L1).
• West Ham have won four points from their last two Premier League away games, more than they won in the previous nine combined.

Conclusion

As has proven to be the case when these sides meet, there always tends to be an abundance of goals. With their previous seven matches seeing over four goals, Tottenham will be out for redemption after their shock 3-2 home defeat to the Hammers in the League Cup. With eight of West Ham’s previous 11 away games ending with three or more goals, a free-scoring Tottenham side will fancy their chances of testing a leaky West Ham back-line. Harry Kane is averaging almost a goal per game and has shone in a Spurs side that have scored 18 goals in their last six home appearances. Although we expect the Lilywhites to close the gap on the top four, David Moyes will be confident about putting up a resilient performance. Grabbing a late winner on Tuesday night, the Hammers do possess some talent when attacking. Aside from a 0-0 draw with Arsenal last month, West Ham have managed to find the net atleast once in six out of their last seven matches.

Verdict: Tottenham win and both teams to score

Best Odds: 15/8

Bookmaker: Bet365