Tottenham 0 West Ham 1: Antonio strikes as Spurs slip in top-four race

Posted Saturday, April 27, 2019 by Goal.com

Michail Antonio scored the first opposition goal at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as West Ham overcame Spurs on Saturday.

Tottenham slipped up in the race for Champions League qualification as they succumbed to a 1-0 Premier League defeat to West Ham.

Mauricio Pochettino's side relied on Christian Eriksen's 88th-minute stunner to secure the points against Brighton and Hove Albion on Tuesday, and a sluggish display this time around was punished when Michail Antonio hammered home in the 67th minute - marking the first time Tottenham have conceded at their new home.

The hosts - who have a Champions League semi-final first-leg tie with Ajax next up on Tuesday - had their chances with Son Heung-min particularly wasteful and Vincent Janssen denied on the line late on, while Lukasz Fabianski was typically impressive in West Ham's goal.

And their lacklustre showing was made worse as Antonio slammed in from close range to inflict a first defeat on Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and keep the top-four race wide open.

Son should have done better when played through by Dele Alli in the 11th minute but the South Korea forward failed to generate enough power to beat Fabianski.

Felipe Anderson demonstrated similar profligacy soon after, drilling straight at Hugo Lloris after driving clear down the left, while a crisp Lucas Moura strike flashed wide at the other end.

Reckless play from Issa Diop might have proved costly for West Ham if not for Fabianski's fine save from Eriksen's snapshot - before Felipe Anderson's deflected strike almost caught Lloris flat footed.

Marko Arnautovic was the next to test Lloris as West Ham grew in confidence after the restart, though Tottenham wanted a penalty when Son went down under pressure from Arthur Masuaku after failing to get a shot off.

West Ham's resilience was rewarded soon after, Antonio expertly controlling Arnautovic's cross before sending a rasping strike past Lloris.

But with Antonio and Diop both squandering chances to make sure of the win, Fabian Balbuena came to West Ham's rescue with a goal-line clearance to deny substitute Janssen an equaliser.