Tottenham faced West Ham in the 15th round of the 2023-24 Season Premier League held at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England at 5:15 a.m. on the 8th (Korea time). It broke the losing chain with a 3-3 draw against Manchester City, but failed to win for five games due to losing points at home.
If the team secured a point on the day, it could be tied with Manchester City, which is ranking fourth in the Premier League. However, it failed to secure even a single point, widening the gap by three points. West Ham was ranking ninth in the Premier League, but it gained ground by three points from Tottenham.
Prior to the match, the mood of the two teams was quite different. Tottenham continued to have eight wins, two draws and no losses through the 10th round, surpassing Manchester City and Liverpool, and becoming the sole leader in the Premier League. However, starting with the match against Chelsea in the 11th round, they lost points after losing three consecutive games and falling to fifth place. 안전놀이터
Recently, something that had been feared happened as well. The best members were good, but they had a wide gap with rotation resources. Key players Van der Ben and Madison collapsed due to injury, causing abnormality in their core line. Since then, players have been sidelined due to injury, and some have been dismissed.
With a total of 11 players missing in the match against Aston Villa, it is now difficult to set up the starting lineup. Bentancur, who recovered for nine months due to a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in the 2022-23 season against Leicester City, was a ray of light for Tottenham. After lifting himself up from team training, he played as a substitute in the match against Crystal Palace to boost his sense of play in the game.
He revitalized Tottenham’s midfield and played until the match against Aston Villa, but something unexpected happened. While developing the rear build-up, he was hit by Aston Villa defender Matty Cash for a “murder tackle.” He collapsed on the ground around 30 minutes in the first half and complained of pain after being hit in the shin and ankle. He couldn’t get out of the pain for a long time and received emergency treatment from the medical team that was deployed afterwards.
He tried to run after overcoming the pain, but his injury was serious. Bentancur sent a sign to the Tottenham bench that he could no longer play. He left the home stadium with his head drooping. Local media reported that it would take a long time to recover from the injury, informing them of the scene where he complained of severe pain and the scene where he limped off the field.
When asked about Bentancur’s condition to Postecoglou, he said, “Matty Cash’s tackle was not great. Bentancur played well against Aston Villa. He is a really creative player. Thanks to him, we were able to score the first goal and get off to a good start. However, Bentancur’s injury departure is something we didn’t want. I am very disappointed.”
Later, he was able to find out Bentancur’s physical condition through Tottenham’s official channel. “Bentancur has undergone a thorough examination since he was injured as a tackle by Matty Cash in the match against Aston Villa. As a result of the thorough examination, he will not be able to play in the remaining schedule for this year (2023). It will take about two months to recover,” Tottenham said in a statement.
Postecoglou said, “The test results were not good. I won’t be able to play for a considerable amount of time in the New Year. It will take several months before I return. We know how hard Bentancur prepared and played. He played for the Uruguayan national team, and it was his first start since his injury. It hurts to know that. Bentancur is a very positive player. I hope to see Bentancur on the ground as soon as possible.”
In the previous round, the team had a 3-3 draw with Manchester City, and successfully escaped losing consecutive games. However, as the team had only one point, the team is committed to creating a rebound in this home game. If it defeats West Ham, it will win its first victory in five games. It can pave the way for its entry into the top four. If it wins on the day, it will tie with Manchester City in fourth place with 30 points.
West Ham showed good performance. The team had two wins and one draw in the three recent Premier League games. It lost points by allowing Aston Villa, Everton and Brentford to win three consecutive games, but is upping the momentum in the UEFA Europa League, which is currently playing in parallel with the Premier League. Adding to the Europa League game, the team has maintained its upward trend with four wins and one draw in five official matches.
Ahead of the match against West Ham, Enzi Postecoglou said, “Luckily, I was able to work with good strikers. Son is a fantastic player in every way. I would be very surprised if he wasn’t one of the great strikers when he finished his career. I already knew that Son was a good player, but I feel that he is a great person who sets an example as a human being, too. Son has gone through many trials throughout his career, but he loves what he does every day. It inspires me a lot. Son feels blessed to play on the ground, and this affects others. I am so grateful to be able to work with Son every day,” he said with a big thumbs-up.
Postecoglou’s praise continued. “I think Son does his best no matter what the people in his head say to him, for good, for bad, or for him. He is running with that in mind. This attitude affects his teammates. Running with all your might doesn’t have any reward, but if the team leader and the best player do that, his teammates have to follow suit. At this time of year, Son has been a very supportive force.”
Son scored his ninth goal in the league by scoring against Manchester City just before. One more goal means double-digit points. If Son scores against West Ham, he will achieve double-digit goals for the eighth consecutive season in the Premier League.
Only six players have scored in double digits for eight consecutive seasons or more in the history of the Premier League. Only six of them are Sadio Mane, Thierry Henry (eight seasons or more), Harry Kane, Sergio Aguero (nine seasons or more), Frank Lampard (10 seasons) and Wayne Rooney (11 seasons). If Son scores a goal in the match against West Ham, he can be on par with Mane and Henri.
This is another reason why he had high expectations for a West Ham goal. He displayed good performance against Manchester City and was strong against West Ham. He met West Ham 17 times in official matches, and scored eight goals and seven assists. Tottenham also had eight wins, three draws and six losses against West Ham. If Son adds one more goal, he will achieve his 113th Premier League goal overall. He will tie Ian Wright, a legendary striker at Arsenal.
Son was named the official Man of the Match (MOM) of the Premier League in the match against Manchester City. However, he was not included in the 14th round of the Premier League selected by the British public broadcaster BBC. Media outlets applauded Kluzewski for scoring the golden equalizer in lieu of Son, who had one goal and one assist in the match against Manchester City.
What is the reason? BBC commentator Garth Crooks excluded Son from the 14th round of this week’s team, and said, “Son Heung-min had an outstanding pass in the first goal of the match against Manchester City. He was the player who energized Tottenham’s attack on the day. It was also Kluzewski who scored the equalizer in the last minute. It was really impressive. If Christian Romero and Mickey van der Benn were in the back, the outcome might have been different,” he said.
There was no Son Heung-min in the 14th round of official migration selected by Premier League legend Alan Shearer. Not Son Heung-min but all Tottenham players were not listed. The official migration team of the Premier League deployed players in a 4-2-4 formation. Bukayo Saka (Arnault), Luca Colleosho (Aston Villa), Zeki Amdouni (Aston Villa) and Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United) were selected as the forward line. Midfielders were Trand Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) and Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea), while four backers were Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United), James Tacowski (Everton), Fabian Shea (Newcastle United), and Timo Livramento (Newcastle United). The goalie’s glove was Robert Sanchez (Chelsea). However, Tottenham manager Enzi Postecoglou was chosen as the best coach in the 14th round.
Tottenham left one-top for captain Son Heung-min. Dejan Kulusevski, Giovanni Rosselso, and Brennan Johnson supported the firepower from behind, while Yves Bissouma and Pierre-Emile Hoivier took two spots at their backs. Pedro Porro played at right fullback for the defense. Christian Romero, who was suspended for three games due to his sending off against Chelsea, returned and played central defense with Ben Davies. Destiny Udogi played left back.
For West Ham, Jared Bohr targeted the Tottenham net with a frontline striker. Lucas Paqueta, Tomasz Soucek, and Mohamed Kudus played in the 1.5 line to revitalize the West Ham attack. James Wardfraus and Edson Alvarez played in the midfield, while Emerson, Nayef Auerd, Quir Zuma, and Vladimir Choufal were the four-backs. The West Ham goal was saved by Ukash Fabianski.
However, he scored the first goal at the 10th minute of the first half. Romero, the main defender, returned after being given disciplinary action. He won an aerial challenge with West Ham defenders at a corner kick, and turned to accurate header shot to sway the West Ham net.
Even after scoring the first goal for his team, Son made all-out efforts to score additional goals. When he caught the ball in front of the box, he boldly attempted to shoot. He also displayed good teamwork with his Tottenham teammates. He also shook the West Ham defense with threatening shots at the 17th minute of the first half.
Tottenham continued to take the lead at home. Even though West Ham stole the ball under pressure and counterattacked, they quickly recovered their ball possession. They also threatened West Ham with intermittent through passes at the 1.5 line, seeking additional attack points.
In the 30th minute of the first half, West Ham’s key striker Kudus aimed at Tottenham’s net. However, it was caught offside and did not lead to additional opportunities. Tottenham tried to break through the West Ham defensive shield with a shot after Rossellso touched the ball in the 30th minute of the first half.
Tottenham tried to counterattack after blocking the West Ham side attack. Udo-ki and others showed explosive speed at fullback and hit the space behind West Ham. Son Heung-min shook the West Ham defense with a one-two link play at the front line as Hoi Bier and others advanced.
Tottenham lost James Maddison due to injury, but Rossellso’s performance was outstanding. He revitalized Tottenham by supplying high-quality passes such as early crosses from the attacking midfielder position. Defensive midfielder Bissouma also often came up and threatened West Ham by hitting shots.
Tottenham pulled the reins more as they entered the second half beyond the middle of the first half. They did not easily give up the initiative in attack and pressured West Ham from the front. West Ham tried to find a way to attack from the side with Kudus at the center. In the 43rd minute of the first half, he tried to finish with a header by receiving a Kudus cross, but he was disappointed because the score was not right.
Tottenham had 77 percent of the ball possession in the first half. There were five shots, and five shots on goal. One of the five shots on goal led to a score. Passes scored 444 in the first 45 minutes. They made most of them, with a 92 percent pass success rate. Corner kicks were attempted four times and fouls were seven. There were no warnings.
West Ham had 23% ball possession in the 45th minute of the first half. Ball possession is not everything, but it can be said that they almost gave their opponents the lead on the road to Tottenham. They only had four shots and one shot on target. They only had 129 attempts. The pass success rate was 71%. The corner kick was only one, so they did not have a smooth attack on set piece. There were three fouls and no warning or sending-off.
West Ham sparked a chase in the second half. A thick shot of football shook Tottenham. The ball, which West Ham pushed forward as if kicking it, caught Bowen’s foot. West Ham had three attacks and Tottenham had five defenses. However, Cudus’ shot hit Romero and POWs consecutively and fell to Bowen’s foot, which was penetrating. Having a chance close to one-on-one with the goalkeeper, he calmly pushed in and shook Tottenham’s net.
After scoring, West Ham tried their best to maintain the mood. Lucas Paqueta attempted to shoot, but was caught in the hands of Vicario, the goalkeeper. He aimed an extra goal with a corner kick set piece. However, Tottenham recovered its ball possession by overcoming the aerial challenge.
West Ham attempted another threatening attack. Bocek received a pass from the side and shot in the box, but Vicario was saved. Even if it was scored, it would not have been recognized as a goal due to an offside decision. After that, Tottenham tried to counterattack and hit the space behind West Ham.
For Tottenham, Hoivier advanced to the West Ham camp and tried to exchange one-two passes with teammates. Hoivier tried to pass through Son Heung-min, who was playing by utilizing the space behind him. West Ham continued their attack with Kudus at the center, aiming for an equalizer and a come-from-behind goal.
Tottenham continued its pass game as the midfielder line formed a square formation. When West Ham changed its direction of attack with a counterattack, it quickly recovered its ball possession. After that, Kluzewski tried to cross early and put the ball into the West Ham box.
Rossellso spearheaded Tottenham’s attack at the 1.5th line. He attempted a forward pass or a sensuous pass with his hind foot, supplying the ball to Tottenham at the right time. Postecoglou excluded Hoivier and Rossellso at the 21st minute of the second half and deployed Hisharlisson and skip. The intention was to add another striker to the third line and center the gravity to rein in additional goals.
As time passed, Tottenham and West Ham showed a tight flow. Eventually, West Ham turned the game around in the 28th minute of the second half. Tottenham made a fatal mistake in the process of the rear build-up. Udo-ki’s back pass was inaccurate and West Ham did not miss its prey. After trying to press, he made a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper. The Ward-Frouse shot hit the post, but it bounced back and fell in front of his feet, and finished with an accurate shot.
West Ham defended its attack by banking on its dense defense. Tottenham tried to sway the formation of West Ham’s defense by moving back and forth between the sides and the center. Postecoglou sent in Brian Hill and Papé Sarr to change the field at the 41st minute of the second half. He intended to secure an equalizer by banking on his offense by using replacement cards in the midfield and the front.
Tottenham scored the goal by sending West Ham into the net right before the match ended. Son Heung-min played for 88 minutes and was replaced, watching from the bench for extra time. Kluzewski dug in from the right to score the point. However, the goal did not score as expected, and the game ended in Tottenham’s defeat.
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