Premier League: Top four the goal as Spurs and Hammers meet

This weekend sees a reduced Premier League fixture list ahead of the March international break, which gives the likes of Tottenham and West Ham the chance to steal a march on their rivals.

Inconsistent Tottenham can still finish fourth

Tottenham are consistently inconsistent. After a 3-2 defeat by Manchester United last weekend, Antonio Conte’s side bounced back to beat Brighton & Hove Albion in midweek. It was a routine win for Spurs, who head into the weekend just three points adrift of the top four.

Tottenham will not qualify for the Champions League if their performance levels continue to oscillate from game to game, though. That is why Sunday’s London derby is so important. A second successive victory would leave Spurs in a  positive place heading into the final international break of the season. A defeat would no doubt produce more headlines about Conte’s future.

There are reasons for Tottenham to be positive ahead of this match. They have won three of their last four Premier League games, and only came unstuck at Old Trafford because of Cristiano Ronaldo’s brilliance. They have found the back of the net 13 times in those four matches, with Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski continuing to impress as a front three.

Harry Kane has found form at the right time for Tottenham

Tottenham can score at least twice here, with over 1.5 goals available at 1.7. West Ham continue to defy expectations West Ham will be on a high after their thrilling comeback against Sevilla in the Europa League on Thursday.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, goals from Tomas Soucek and Andriy Yarmolenko saw the Hammers overturn the deficit and advance to the quarter-finals. It was a fantastic night for the club – arguably the best since they moved to the London Stadium – but the match will have taken a lot out of David Moyes’ men, both mentally and physically. Tottenham will benefit from an extra 24 hours of rest and a much more stress-free midweek encounter.

West Ham will also miss Jarrod Bowen, who is so key to their counter-attacking game away from home. It is also worth considering West Ham’s poor record in away games against the so-called big six: they have already lost at Manchester City, Manchester United, Arsenal and Liverpool this term. Spurs and both teams to score is good value at 3.3.

Kane can continue fine form

After a slow start to the season Kane has got back to his best in recent weeks. The England captain continues to thrive as both a No.10 and a No.9 within the same game. He is one of the best passers in the Premier League but, crucially, that is not affecting his ability to put the ball in the net: he has scored seven goals in his last six outings.

West Ham’s exertions on Thursday mean they could start slowly and Kane looks good value at 4.4 to score first.

Recommended bets:

Tottenham over 1.5 @ 1.7

Spurs & BTTS @ 3.3

Kane first @ 4.4