Tottenham vs West Ham Preview, Prediction, Team News & Predicted Lineups Ahead Of Saturday’s Early Kick-Off

Tottenham welcome West Ham to North London in the Premier League’s early kick-off on Saturday, and we’ve got the latest in regards to team news and predicted lineups ahead of the clash, as well as a prediction within our preview.

Ange Postecoglou and his Tottenham side return to Premier League action following October’s international window with a home fixture against city rivals West Ham, where they’ll be looking to bounce back after suffering defeat last time out.

Spurs led 2-0 at the break against Brighton in their final league fixture before the internationals, thanks to goals from the in-form Brennan Johnson and James Maddison, but threw away the lead in shocking fashion and ended up losing 3-2.

Brennan Johnson since deactivating Instagram:

7 games
7 goals

Club or country, doesn't matter. pic.twitter.com/TfEpPuj0Xx

— StatMuse FC (@statmusefc) October 11, 2024

It’s a result that brought an end to their five-game winning run across all competitions and cemented their position in ninth place ahead of Gamweek 8. West Ham, meanwhile, are two points behind in 12th.

The Hammers have had an underwhelming start to the campaign, having won just two of their opening seven league matches this term, with their most recent triumph coming in the form of a 4-1 win against Ipswich last time out.

That win followed a 1-1 draw against Brentford the week prior, with the East Londoners now unbeaten in two successive league matches for the first time since April 2024.

As many would’ve predicted, Tottenham are heavily favoured to earn all three points on Saturday among the UK’s best football betting sites at around 1/2, while the in-form Johnson can be backed to score at anytime at around 15/8.

Tottenham Team News

Spurs captain Heung-min Son will be eyeing a return to the field of play against West Ham, with the 32-year-old sitting out of his side’s last three matches due to hamstring injury, while he also missed out on South Korea’s World Cup qualifying matches against Jordan and Iraq over the past week.

Richarlison and Wilson Odobert were also injured prior to the international window, and while the latter is closer to a return than the former, the pair aren’t expected to make a return for the Hammers’ visit.

Lucas Bergvall is also a concern for Postecoglou’s side, as the youngster was forced to return from international duty earlier than scheduled after suffering a minor injury prior to Sweden’s Nations League clash against Estonia.

West Ham Team News

As for West Ham, their only concern is with German striker Niclas Fullkrug. The former Borussia Dortmund man has been struggling with a calf injury since the summer and has been out of action since Germany’s 1-0 win over Hungary in the Nations League last month.

While he continues to build up his fitness levels, he isn’t expected to start for Julen Lopetegui’s side this weekend, which will likely leave Michail Antonio leading the line for a third successive English top-flight game.

Antonio has one goal and one assist in his last two league games, and featured for 83 minutes in Jamaica’s 0-0 draw against Honduras on Tuesday night.

Tottenham vs West Ham Predicted Lineups

Tottenham Predicted Lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Udogie; Kulusevski, Bentancur, Maddison; Johnson, Solanke, Son

West Ham Predicted Lineup:

Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Emerson; Rodriguez; Bowen, Soucek, Paqueta, Kudus; Antonio

Tottenham vs West Ham Prediction

While West Ham come into this one having enjoyed their best result of the season against Ipswich last time out, we expect Tottenham to come out on top as they look to bounce back after their bitterly disappointing defeat to Brighton.

Spurs have a strong record against the Hammers historically and have lost just once to the East Londoners across their last six competitive meetings, which includes three victories and two draws.

Despite just two points separating the pair in the table, Tottenham have certainly been the better side so far this season, especially in attacking areas. Postecoglou’s men have scored 14 goals across the opening seven gameweeks, the fourth-highest tally in the league, while West Ham have conceded 11, which is the fifth-worst in the division.

The North Londoners are seventh when it comes to big chances created this term with 17, meanwhile the Hammers are rock bottom, level with Newcastle United having created just eight.

Johnson’s form is also another consideration, with the Welshman making it seven goals in seven successive matches while on international duty, and so is the potential return of Son. If Son is deemed fit to start and is in from the off alongside Johnson and Dominic Solanke, we expect the trio to cause Saturday’s visitors some real problems.

Prediction: Tottenham 3-1 West Ham