"Big" Sam has done all that was asked of him.  Improve the style, win more games than last season and if failure to secure a top four place is the reason behind their thinking of getting rid of him they should remember two things.  Where they finished last season and to be careful what they wish for.  Already they are taking the surrender at West Brom in the FA Cup last week as a sign that he is not up to the job.  Debates about whether he wants the players who are brought in appear to be uppermost on the radio phone-ins and the style that changes when he brings Carroll and Nolan into the team all hint that the fans are not behind him.  As we know here, how long will it be before the fans turn against the next man in charge ?

West Ham have a decent side when they can play their favoured eleven, but injuries and suspensions too often rob them of those eleven, meaning the squad has to be called upon and the depth there has been tested and plumbed.  Alex Song was a good signing, as he brings experience to the midfield, alongside the workhorses Nolan and Noble, with the forwards initially paying back their fees with Valencia and Sakho looking a dangerous pairing, but much depends on Downing getting the ball into the box and Carroll's continued fitness (which hasn't happened) to knock down the long balls they don't play.

Adrian has performed well between the sticks this season, but they can't rely on him every match and while he did well against WBA, he couldn't stop everything and was exposed too often.  Claims that the players were tired and were suffering from the number of games they had (which you should expect that if you become anything like successful) have not gone down well.  With a week's rest since then, that will not be on the list of excuses this time around.  Looking at the players at big Sam's disposal at the moment, he might choose not to be as adventurous as earlier in the season and flood the midfield to try and stem Tottenham's flow. 

It's a week before  our Cup Final.  This is West Ham's.  Expect them to put more in than they would against anyone else.
 

TV
BT Sport - (live coverage)  (repeated 07.30 Monday - extended highlights)
Match of the Day 2  (BBC 1) - Sunday 22.30 (highlights)  Also available online.

For coverage in all parts of the world, check here and here.

Radio :  
BBC LONDON 94.9FM (London area only), Digital Radio (London area only) &  Sky Channel 0152  (live coverage)
Commentary may be found on
>   BBC Radio Five Live (live coverage)  606/939 MW
>  TalkSport (DAB or 1089 MW)
>  Absolute Radio  (1215 AM/MW)

If available on BBC radio, it can supposedly be heard in these countries on these stations ...
Australia (Melbourne) SEN  -  116 AM  Live Transmissions: TWI, Saturday. 12.45 & 15.00 matches
Australia (Sydney)  Radio 2  -  1611AM  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 12.45 Match
Singapore Media Corp Radio  -  93.8 FM  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 15.00 Match
South Africa  SABC (Radio 2000)  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 15.00 Match
Uganda  Radio 1 (English) 90.0 FM, Radio 2 (Lugandan) 87.9 FM  Live Transmission: TWI, Saturday, 15.00 Match
North America (USA, Canada, Mexico, Caribbean)  Sirius Satellite Radio  Live transmission: Saturday - 12.45, 15.00 (TWI) & 17.15 (BBC) Sunday - 14.00 & 16.05 (BBC) Mon, Tue, Wed - Various times (BBC)

Internet :
www.spurs.co.uk   Live webcast  - subscribers only
BBC London - http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2005/10/12/live_commentaries_feature.shtml click on link to "Listen to Tottenham Hotspur live commentary" on top right hand menu.

  2  Kyle WALKER
  5  Jan VERTONGHEN
15  Eric DIER
  3  Danny ROSE 

38  Ryan MASON (22  Nacer CHADLI 80)
42  Nabil BENTALEB

17  Andros TOWNSEND (  9  Roberto SOLDADO 60)

19  Mousa DEMBELE  (23  Christian ERIKSEN  46)
11  Erik LAMELA

18  Harry KANE 

Unused subs: 
13  Michel VORM
33  Ben DAVIES
21  Federico FAZIO
25  Benjamin STAMBOULI

18  Carl JENKINSON
  5  James TOMKINS
  2  Winston REID
  3  Aaron CRESSWELL      

11  Stewart DOWNING
16  Mark NOBLE (c)      (24  Carlton COLE 68  19   James COLLINS 87])
30  Alexandre SONG

  8  Cheikhou KOUYATE 
15  Diafra SAKHO 

31  Enner VALENCIA (  7 Matt JARVIS 75)

Unused subs: 
22  Jussi JAASKELAINEN
20  Guy DEMEL
17  Joey O'BRIEN
  4  Kevin NOLAN
 

West Ham United (time) wasted an opportunity to beat Spurs at White Hart Lane when they threw away a 2-0 lead to end up with a draw when Harry Kane scored in the 97th minute npenalty saved.

It was some sort of restorative justice that the hero of the Irons fans – Adrian – who had been the chief culprit in eeking away minutes over every goal kick, who was punished by Harry Kane. A 97th minute penalty was given for a foul on the Spurs forward and although his shot was stopped by the Spanish keeper, retribution was gained as Kane stroked home the rebound to make it 2-2. If there hadn't been the time-wasting, there wouldn't have been the time for the penalty to be awarded.

It came back to bite West Ham and Adrian and so the away end roared at the save and then went very quiet when it wasn't “happening again” for them.

The opening game win by Spurs seemed to have been forgotten by the Irons, as they crowed over their lead, but in the end the last minute revival by Spurs did the trick once more.

With the Spurs side showing a number of changes from Thursday night's Europa League match against Fiorentina, Eriksen was on the bench with Chadli, while Kane, Dier, Dembele, Rose, Mason and Lamela were returned to the starting line-up. West Ham had a week's rest since they were thrashed in the FA Cup by West Bromwich Albion and were ready to give their all.

There were early chances for Tottenham, with some good movement of the ball.  In the fifth minute, Nabil Bentaleb made himself a yard and blasted a shot at goal with his left foot from 25 yards right of centre, which brought a flying save from Adrian to push the ball wide of his left hand post.  The ball came to him from the following corner, but this time the Algerian midfielder's effort from just outside the box was straight at the keeper.  Spurs came closer in the 11th minute, when Rose played a long ball forward that eluded the hapless Tomkins and Kane was on to it quickly.  Adrian came out to meet him, but Kane cutely kicked the ball with the outside of his foot while jumping into the air, leaving the West Ham defenders and keeper helpless, as the ball went wide of them, but they were relieved to see the ball bounce off the foot of the post and off for a goal kick.

While Spurs were on top in these early parts of the match, they failed to hold onto possession, being loose in their passing, pressured by West Ham closing them down quickly.  It threw Spurs out of their stride and this allowed West Ham to get into positions to threaten the Tottenham goal.   Downing had forced Danny Rose into a hurried block as he shot at goal and then Cresswell moved forward to strike a shot across goal and about 10 yards wide.  When Dier cleared the ball in the area, it struck Ryan Mason and fell for Sakho, but Lloris ran out to block his shot and then Dier was there to clear things up when Lloris had to rush back to his line.

In the 22nd minute, Mousa Dembele lost the ball in his own penalty area and Spurs were the architect's of their own downfall.  Trying to play the ball out, Dembele played a ball wide of Walker and Noble picked it up, sent Cresswell wide and his cross was powerfully headed in by Kayoute from five yards out, leaving Lloris no chance.   One mistake punished and Spurs were behind.  That was all it took.

Tottenham tried to get back into it straight away and Townsend raced won the right to win a corner and from it Bentaleb had a shot blocked and the ball came out to Vertonghen, who tried a volley from just inside the area, but he was leaning back and the ball ballooned over the top.  They got closer again when Kane's clever chipped pass forward saw Rose rise to beat Adrian and Reid to it and get a header on goal that nestled on top of the net.   Lloris had to block a shot from Valencia, who got on the end of a Cresswell cross and then from that Tottenham broke away and Mason had a shot from 20 yards out that went a yard wide.  .

Play stopped for treatment to Kayoute and Sakho and when it was restarted the referee told Noble to give Spurs the ball back, which he did by kicking it as wide and as far towards Tottenham's own corner as he could.  Later in the game when Dier put the ball out for a throw in as a similar situation arose, Noble was in his face giving him stick, when Sakho had been standing in front of the Spurs defender, meaning he couldn't do much else.  The West Ham captain was really leading by example and more tantrums were to come from him.  Before that he managed to do something with the football in volleying at goal from an acute angle, but Kyle Walker got in the way at the expense of a corner.  There was still time for him to pick up a yellow card in added time at the end of the first half for pulling back Townsend's shirt. 

Paul Allen's interview at half-time intimated that we was always more Spurs than West Ham and his time spent at Spurs saw him develop into a fine, aggressive midfielder.  As the player warmed up, Christian Eriksen disappeared down the tunnel and when he re-emerged, it was in place of Mousa Dembele.  Initially, it made little difference in Tottenham's attacking play, as Eriksen was failing to find his intended targets with his through passes.

Mason tried a volley from outside the box, but it was well off target and at the other end, Walker had to be alert to block a cross from a quickly taken free-kick.  Mason curled a 20 yard effort straight into Adrian's chest before Lloris was called into action at the opposite end, when he did well to rush Sakho, as he raced onto Noble's through ball, getting a touch to take the shot wide.  When Walker blazed a low shot across the face of goal, it only needed a touch but nobody in a white shirt was there to apply it and when West Ham went forward again, they doubled their lead.

It was a weak goal to conceded and when Noble's cross came in from the left, it missed Valencia and with Rose looking for offside, with his arm up, Sakho ran around behind him to shoot  into the ground and into the net from a tight angle at the far post.  Valencia had been interfering and looked offside on TV replays as the ball went beyond him for Sakho to score.  Noble then played a free-kick in which Reid headed down for Valencia, but Lloris was there to block his volley and then kick the ball away before he was able to follow up.  Noble then had his bust up with Vertonghen which saw Jan react angrily to the Irons' captain's rash challenge on Bentaleb.  He was soon substituted by Big Sam with Carlton Cole coming on, but he lasted only a quarter of an hour as his injury-prone reputation came home to roost again.

With twenty minutes left, Tottenham started to pick up their game.  Keeping the ball on the floor, Spurs were running West Ham around.  Bentaleb and Kane had shooting opportunities before a shot from Lamela went into his path off a West Ham defender and he buried it past Adrian, but the linesman's flag was already up.  With Christian Eriksen on the pitch a  free-kick within range always offers the chance of a goal and in the 77th minute, he dipped one over the wall and made Adrian go at full stretch to tip it past the keeper's left hand post.

When Spurs moved the ball wide on the right, Lamela looked for Roberto Soldado in the six yard box, but Cresswell sliced in front of his own goal, luckily over the bar for West Ham.  From the corner, Eriksen touched it short to Erik and his ball into the area was waist high with pace on it and Adrian did poorly in half-fisting it out, but only to the edge of the box, where Danny Rose dug it into the ground in an attempt to keep it low and it bounced up and beyond Adrian's funny little dance to reach it to get Spurs a goal back with ten minutes left..

This gave Spurs the momentum and there was little more attacking from the Irons, as they dropped deep and got as many men behind the ball as they could.  Kane was denied a shot as he broke into the box by Reid, then Lamela picked out Chadli on the left and his touch saw the ball drop for Soldado, who had a shot brought a save from the goalie.  Pressure was building as the game entered five added minutes and Kane and Eriksen had shots blocked and way over.  It looked like being one of those days, until the ball was played forward by Lloris and it dropped for Kane.  He played it to Eriksen in the D on the edge of the box, then it popped out right to Kane, who touched it into the area only for Song to fall all over the back of him to bring him down and for referee Moss to point to the spot.

The man of the moment got up to take the spot-kick and Adrian pointed the way he should put it, but Harry went the other way and so did the keeper, diving to his right to keep it out with a stretching hand.  He could only push it back into the middle of the goal though and Kane reacted quickest to knock the ball home from five yards out and to send the Spurs fans wild, while the claret and blue shirts hit the grass in despair.  It was a thrilling finish that earned Spurs a point when all had looked lost, but West Ham could not hold out and were encouraging Spurs on by playing so deep with no out ball.  Sam's tactics of fear cost them two points and may, in the long run, cost him his job there.

For Tottenham, it was a performance that cannot be repeated next week.  Playing for ten minutes is good enough to earn a point against the Irons, but 80 minutes of sloppy play might see Chelsea out of reach by then.  Spurs willingness not to give in earned them a point and while it wasn't the slickest play that got us the two goals, sometimes you have to get what you can out of games.  Unlucky for West Ham that they haven't learned that and for all Big Sam's whinges about the match, his team have to learn that ... whether in the time they have by regulation (90 minutes) or that which the referee adds on for stoppages (injury or added for time wasting).  That extra time might mean his at West Ham is running out.

Kirk Hammerton

"Honest" Sam moaned that he thought Kane did brilliantly for the penalty, but when you are given a helping hand on the way, there is no "brilliant" about it.  Perhaps he should look at the nature of the foul rather than go on about Spurs "winning" it.

His side haven't had more than one penalty all season makes them too "honest" in his eyes.  Perhaps he should look at the antics of Noble (a misnomer if ever there was one) if he really wants to believe his side is honest.  His scything down of Bentaleb when he was already on a yellow card was worthy of another and his reaction to Vertonghen was worthy of yet another.  Why else would "Honest" Sam take him off when he is such an "honest" player ????

A manager seeking excuses for losing points from a winning position ??  Shurely not !!

So ... no silverware for West Ham in their Cup Final this season.  Long may that "happen again" !!
 

Tough luck Fat Sam. 

Two games this season and two last minute goals for Spurs.  Get your players to keep going until the final whistle and not when you think it is.

If your players were fit, then you wouldn't have had to substitute your substitute.  That probably added one the thirty seconds Kane scored the winner in !!
 

He once said he cried after his first game at Spurs when Tottenham came back to win and I would like to think he was similarly lachrymose today, but I think he would have still been moaning too much to have time to cry over the win that was theirs for the taking until he got himself subbed for being a bit of a temperamental not so superstar.