Tottenham Hotspur’s relegation rivals West Ham were beaten 3-0 by Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Earlier this week, Tottenham Hotspur were handed a significant mathematical boost when Opta’s supercomputer predicted Brentford would beat West Ham United at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday. And things turned out exactly as it was predicted.
West Ham were thrashed 3-0 by London rivals Brentford, thus blowing their chances to pile the pressure on Tottenham ahead of their trip to Aston Villa on Sunday evening. The Hammers could have moved five points clear of the drop zone with a win, but instead, they have given the invitation for Spurs to drag them back into the bottom three.
Igor Thiago was the star of the show for Brentford, netting his 25th goal of an incredible campaign. He converted the penalty in the 52nd minute after Dango Ouattara was hauled down in the box by El Hadji Malick Diouf. Thiago’s penalty came after former Arsenal star Konstantinos Mavropanos inadvertently turned the ball into his own net in the first half.
Mikkel Damsgaard sealed the deal with a low drive past goalkeeper Mads Hermansen in the 82nd minute, helping the Bees to climb up to sixth spot in the table. It wasn’t a straightforward victory for Keith Andrews’ side, though. West Ham were denied thrice by the woodwork, while Brentford goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher played his part in preserving the clean sheet, notably producing a great save from Taty Castellanos’ effort.
Tottenham got the favour they desperately needed ahead of the Aston Villa showdown
In what is shaping to be a nerve-wracking relegation battle, Tottenham are in need of favours, and they have now got one of those thanks to Brentford beating West Ham 3-0 at home. Spurs overcame Wolves 1-0 at Molineux last weekend and thought they had jumped out of the relegation zone. However, West Ham ensured Spurs stayed in the bottom three with a last-gasp win over Everton on the same day.
This time around, though, the Roberto De Zerbi-managed club’s weekend has started well, with the Hammers losing in West London. It means that the North Londoners’ fate is back in their own hands with four games left to play. They face a mighty challenge in the form of Aston Villa at Villa Park, a place which has not been a happy hunting ground for Tottenham in the last few years.
De Zerbi has demanded total commitment and sacrifice from his boys heading into the final stretch of games, starting at Villa. The big question for all the fans will be how the Italian tactician approaches the game against Unai Emery’s side.
All in all, an injury-riddled Tottenham side will have to play out of their skins to get a positive result in the Midlands. Thanks to Brentford’s win over West Ham, De Zerbi and Co. have got the psychological lift they required ahead of their big clash.