Tottenham would do well to recall their last trip to West Ham

Tottenham travel across town to West Ham’s London Stadium on Friday in hopes of history not repeating itself.

The last time Tottenham made that trip — then to West Ham’s old home of Upton Park — the circumstances were broadly similar to what they are now.

Mauricio Pochettino had led his men on a remarkable run of fine form, winning six matches on the trot. They were due for a real test as they welcomed Arsenal to White Hart Lane on the weekend, but first they had to deal with the pesky matter of Slaven Bilić’s West Ham.

Present-day Tottenham, of course, just came off a commanding 2-0 win over the Gunners at the Lane this past weekend. That was their ninth consecutive win, a charge that continues to keep them in the hunt for the title with just a handful of matches left in the season.

West Ham, once again, seems just a minor hurdle to leap over as Spurs’ barrel on to their trickiest match left in the season — a visit from Manchester United next weekend.

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With history repeating itself, Pochettino would do well to recall just what happened in this fixture last season.

Though confident enough of a win that both Kyle Walker and Dele Alli were rested, Spurs ended up meeting surprising resistance from West Ham. An early goal from their hosts at first seemed easy to overcome, but the Hammers held strong and maintained their lead through the final whistle.

Bilić accomplished this remarkable feat by realizing that Spurs were most vulnerable to their own tactics. It was possible, he realized, that Spurs’ counter-press could itself by countered, and that doing so would disrupt Pochettino’s gameplan dramatically.

Though West Ham gifted Tottenham the ball for much of the match, the visitors rarely held possession in dangerous areas without being constantly hassled. With ball control no guarantee and passing routes clogged with swarming West Ham defenders, Spurs usually commanding shot count dwindled. They managed just three shots on target, none of which were converted.

It was a match that foresaw the difficulty Spurs would have just one week later when they took on Borussia Dortmund in the Europa League. The German side’s own counter-press overwhelmed any footing Spurs hoped to find, and over two matches they got well and truly routed.

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Bilić has no reason not to utilize the same tactics again at London Stadium on Friday. Though Spurs have matured considerably this year, at times they still looked vulnerable to sides that chase down the ball in high areas. Liverpool’s remarkable 2-0 win in February is perhaps the best example from the 2016/17 season.

With key men injured and Dmitri Payet — the man who set up the winning goal last season — transferred, West Ham’s ability to pull this all off again seem slim. That doesn’t mean that Pochettino shouldn’t still be wary of what tricks the Hammers still have to pull.