Just one point and one place apart in the lower echelons of the Premier League table, London rivals West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur cross paths at the London Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Graham Potter's men have had a week to dissect their excruciating 3-2 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion, whereas the Lilywhites have just put one foot firmly in this year's Europa League final.
Match preview
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Aided by the quickest goal ever scored in a Europa League semi-final, Tottenham are well on their way to a likely date with destiny against Manchester United, even if the 3-1 scoreline on Thursday evening was not as emphatic as it perhaps should have been.
Brennan Johnson's first-minute opener, James Maddison's low finish and Dominic Solanke's nonchalant penalty put Spurs in cruise control against Bodo/Glimt, but a late concession gave the Norwegian giants a renewed flicker of hope before their second-leg reunion on artificial turf.
Nevertheless, Postecoglou should now be just 180 minutes from fulfilling his second-season trophy prophecy at Tottenham, but whether a first major honour in 17 years and return to the Champions League would save him from the axe remains the biggest unanswered question.
As Liverpool celebrated the win that clinched the Premier League title last weekend, Tottenham - who took a shock lead at Anfield only to be slaughtered 5-1 - were left to lament a 19th top-flight loss of the season; Postecoglou could now become the first Spurs boss to lose as many as 20 in a single campaign.
A fourth straight Premier League defeat this weekend - and fifth successive top-flight loss on the road - would plunge Tottenham to a scarcely believable 17th place in the standings, but the Lilywhites can take solace from the fact that their hosts' domestic campaign has been nothing short of disastrous either.
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A sign of just how sour things were for West Ham last weekend, Potter's pre-Tottenham press conference on Friday started with the Irons boss being asked if he was genuinely okay, having cut a forlorn and furious figure at the Amex Stadium.
Two-one up against Brighton heading into the final two minutes of normal time, West Ham had two points stolen from them when Kaoru Mitoma levelled matters for the Seagulls, who then astonishingly claimed all of the spoils when Carlos Baleba's speculative strike sailed into the corner via a deflection.
Brighton's delirium was West Ham's dejection on the South Coast, as the Irons' winless Premier League run stretched to seven matches since February's success over Leicester City, and securing their Premier League status thanks to Newcastle United battering Ipswich Town was not much consolation.
The hosts' collapse last weekend makes it 12 points dropped from winning positions since Potter took charge - only doomed Southampton (14) have lost more in that timeframe - and the less said about October's 4-1 humbling at the hands of Tottenham the better.
However, this exact fixture last April ended with West Ham holding Spurs to a 1-1 draw, one that extended the Irons' unbeaten Premier League home run against their London rivals to four matches, last going down to the Lilywhites on their own patch in 2019.
Team News
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To say that Tottenham's midweek success came at a cost would be a major understatement, as goalscorers Maddison and Solanke both sustained issues in the second half of the win over Bodo/Glimt, while Lucas Bergvall sported crutches on the sidelines after hurting his ankle in training.
Postecoglou has now conceded that he expects Bergvall to be missing for the rest of the season, while Maddison and Solanke will almost certainly be spared for next Thursday's second leg, but the former's condition is of some concern as he awaits scan results.
Captain Son Heung-min (foot) also remains in the infirmary alongside ACL victim Radu Dragusin, and after making a mammoth eight changes at Anfield last weekend, Postecoglou could shuffle the pack significantly again.
While Spurs could lose a centre-forward in Solanke, West Ham will welcome one back to the fold in the shape of Evan Ferguson, who was ineligible to face his parent club Brighton in gameweek 34.
There was no update on Edson Alvarez (back) in Potter's press conference, but the Mexican midfielder is expected to be in with a chance of coming back this weekend, although Michail Antonio (leg) and Crysencio Summerville (hamstring) are long-term absentees.
Surely sensing an opportunity to get one over his distracted visitors, Potter could sacrifice one of his centre-backs for Niclas Fullkrug in a system switch, reverting to a 4-2-3-1 shape from last weekend's initial 3-5-2 formula.
West Ham United possible starting lineup:
Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Emerson; Soucek, Alvarez; Bowen, Paqueta, Kudus; Fullkrug
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Vicario; Gray, Danso, Davies, Spence; Kulusevski, Sarr, Bissouma; Odobert, Richarlison, Tel
We say: West Ham United 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur
As abysmal as West Ham's recent record may look at face value, each of their last six defeats has been by just the one goal, and they have given the likes of Bournemouth, Liverpool and Newcastle United good runs for their money.
Potter's men therefore have our backing to avoid successive losses, but their winless streak will surely be prolonged as a rotated Spurs side head home with a share of the spoils.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Ben Knapton
