Sherwood wants positive reaction

Tottenham caretaker manager Tim Sherwood is hoping for a positive reaction from the players when they face West Ham in the League Cup.

Sunday’s 5-0 defeat to Liverpool saw Andre Villas-Boas sacked at White Hart Lane with Sherwood taking temporary charge until his successor is announced.

His first match in charge is on Wednesday in the League Cup quarter-finals, and the 44-year-old has been happy with what he has seen in training.

West Ham upset Tottenham in early October with Sam Allardyce’s side winning 3-0 at White Hart Lane, and Sherwood is keen to avoid a repeat.

“The lads have been good,” he told the club’s official website. “When you lose your manager it’s a change, but I’m hoping to get a few messages across so we can get a positive result against West Ham.

“It is a huge game, especially on the back on what they did to us at the Lane. We have to get out there on the front foot, and impose ourselves on them as soon as we can in the game.

“We’ll have to be patient; they got bodies behind the ball and hit us on the counter attack. We’ll have to impose ourselves nice and early, get the crowd behind us and really be up and at them.

“In defensive areas we’re quite light, it’s up to them to step to the mark and perform for the club and for themselves.”