Tottenham’s 1-1 draw at home to Leeds United still leaves them in the driving seat of the relegation race. But with only two points between West Ham and Spurs and two games to go, each result can turn the battle for survival on its head.
Tottenham Hotspur might rue the many missed opportunities to secure all of the three points up for grabs in their game against Leeds United.
While West Ham’s loss at home to Arsenal means that Spurs managed to extend the gap to the drop zone to two points, games against bottom half of the table Newcastle and Leeds still give West Ham a fighting chance to finish above Spurs come the end of the season.
Spurs themselves face a historically fruitless fixture, away at Stamford Bridge, while their record at home this season is not necessarily cause for much hope in Tottenham’s game against Everton on the closing day of the Premier League season.
The Lilywhites will have to count on West Ham to lose at least one of their remaining two games, which would likely give Spurs their safety if they manage at least a point from their remaining two fixtures.
Predicting the remaining fixtures for West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur
The Hammers face a visit to St. James’ Park, famously a hostile and difficult ground for any travelling club. Tottenham can take some consolation in West Ham’s record away to Newcastle as the East End club only managed six victories and eight draws from 27 visits to the Geordie ground.
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More recently, St. James’ Park was a happier hunting ground for the Hammers, who beat the Magpies two goals to nil on their last visit there.
Even though West Ham will likely leave everything on the pitch, the struggling Newcastle seem to be rediscovering their form as the returns of Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes from injury spells propelled them to a 3-1 win over Brighton in their last game at home.
Opta have Newcastle as favourites to beat West Ham with a 46.2% chance to take all three points, a West Ham win at 29.8%, and a draw being the least likely result at 24%.
With Nuno’s West Ham still remaining a dangerous side, as they have shown in their game against Arsenal, we believe a 1- 1 draw is the most likely result.
A point for West Ham would take their tally up to 37 and would close the gap to Spurs to just one point; however, Spurs could potentially then relegate West Ham if they were to win at Stamford Bridge two days later.
In the event of a Newcastle win, only a point at the Bridge could save Spurs, bringing them three points above the drop zone and with a goal difference superiority nearly certainly too significant for West Ham to better.
West Ham United face their own visit from Leeds United on the last day of the Premier League season. Depending, of course, on results elsewhere, they could be either going into the fixture already relegated or still with everything to play for.
If Leeds’ intensity in their game against Tottenham is anything to go by, the Northern club will almost certainly not arrive in East London “on the beach.”
West Ham’s record against Leeds at home is actually rather dreadful, too. In Leeds’ 13 visits to East London in the Premier League, the home side only managed three wins and three draws, losing on the seven other occasions.
If anything, Daniel Farke’s men proved this season how difficult they are to break down, especially away from home. Their last loss away from home came in January when they lost to Newcastle in a 4:3 goal fest.
With West Ham’s recent wastefulness in front of goal and Leeds’ tenacity in defending, we predict a 0-0, another draw for West Ham.
If our predictions are to come true, West Ham would sit on the same point tally, 38 points, as Spurs currently.
Tottenham, on the other hand, face incredibly difficult fixtures and unfavourable records too. Their first remaining game sees them make a cross-London journey to Stamford Bridge to meet a severely underperforming Chelsea side.
The upcoming contest at Stamford Bridge will, without a doubt, be a game of whose records are the most ossified.
Will Chelsea continue their miserable streak without a Premier League win stretching since February?
Or will Tottenham’s attrocious record at the Bridge precede Chelsea’s? Spurs, after all, are without a result in Chelsea’s side of West London since the 22/23 season, and without a win there since 2018. But Spurs also have the fourth-best away record in the League this year, while Chelsea, although not to the same extent as Tottenham, have one of the worst home records too.
The one thing that could also be in Tottenham’s favour is Chelsea’s FA Cup final against Manchester City, played three days before the fixture against Tottenham.
With nothing to play for in the league, Chelsea will almost certainly prioritise their shot at silverware, which could also potentially give the Blues a place in European competitions next year.
Roberto De Zerbi’s out of possession approach will probably be better suited for the tactical matchup against Chelsea, so we’re counting on the adversities facing the two London clubs to cancel eachother out.
A tense two-all draw is our prediction.
Spurs also haven’t won a game at home since December, meaning that any points from Everton’s visit to the New White Hart Lane on the last day of the season are far from guaranteed.
Everton have also been prodigious away from home and could still realistically be playing for a spot in next year’s European competitions.
This game’s result will likely come down to the individual quality available to Tottenham, and unfortunately, with Dominic Solanke’s return still not on the horizon and James Maddison’s capacity to play at least an hour equally doubtful, we view that Everton’s organisation and dogged defending will be too much for Spurs to break down, resulting in a 0-1 loss.
The verdict: Spurs stay up by a point
If our predictions come to pass, West Ham would end the season on 38 points. Spurs’ result at Stamford Bridge would bring their tally up to 39, meaning they would stay up by a point on the final day.
