Alan Shearer has made a big claim ahead of Tottenham Hotspur’s London derby against West Ham United as the Lilywhites look to bounce back to winning ways.
Spurs need a response after Brighton humiliation
Ange Postecoglou was honest about the fact that his side lacked intensity or belief in the second half against the Seagulls, terming the performance as ‘unacceptable’ (Football.London).
He will want to see his players come flying out of the blocks against West Ham and deliver a statement display on the back of the humiliation at the Amex Stadium.
Ange Postecoglou’s big test
Shearer believes that the London derby is a huge game in the context of Postecoglou’s tenure at Tottenham as we find out if his messages have had the desired effect on the Spurs squad.
He suggested that the Hammers will push the home side close but backed the Lilywhites to just about edge out their local rivals.
The Newcastle legend told BetFair: “This is a big game for Ange Postecoglou. It’s a huge game for Spurs after what happened to them last time at Brighton.
“He has said himself that the biggest disappointment of his Spurs reign so far was the way they crumbled when winning 2-0 last time out.
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“West Ham will take some encouragement from that performance; they can be brave, and they might believe they can get something out of the game.
“Ange will be looking and demanding a real performance after what happened in the last game, and because of that, I’ll go for Tottenham to edge it, just.”
Spurs will have to be clinical
One would expect Tottenham to have a lot of the ball and dominate territorially against the East London side, who will be happy to play on the counter-attack.
Postecoglou will want to see improvements in both ends of the pitch, with Spurs needing to be more clinical in the final third while also being switched on defensively for the 90 minutes.