Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
THE INCREDIBLES
Hammers crack the top four as Moyes finally beats Mourinho
AT long last, David Moyes conquered his old foe – and the Champions League now beckons for West Ham.
As for Jose Mourinho, he was left to fume on the touchline as the storm clouds gather around the Tottenham manager, after a latest setback that could be potentially fatal to their chances of a top-four place.
Yes, West Ham were hanging on at the end, and yes, Tottenham came so close to clinching a draw from this gripping encounter at the London Stadium.
But if you let in two sloppy goals like Spurs did – and have done too often this season – you pay the price. This
morning, Moyes (below left, with captain Mark Noble), after his first win over Mourinho in 16 attempts as a manager, sees his team in fourth in the Premier League, after one defeat in their last 11 league games.
They are not going away.
The heat is on Mourinho though, whose side, after this wretched run of five defeats in their last six Premier League games, remain in ninth – and are nine points behind the Hammers.
Their collapse from being top of the table in December has been startling.
The Spurs board are reluctant to wield the axe because the cost of sacking Mourinho (right) would be massive and there is still a Carabao Cup final to come and the Europa League to play for. But the pressure has cranked up another notch.
You simply cannot defend like this and hope to prosper.
Spurs were behind after only five minutes thanks to a truly dreadful goal. Jarrod Bowen curled a neat cross in towards the near post. For some reason Eric Dier left the ball and Hugo Lloris managed to save Michail Antonio’s first effort with his knee but could not hold it.
The Hammers striker had the easiest of tasks to slam in the rebound.
It was just the start West Ham wanted, and though Harry Kane drove his shot just wide from a Spurs break, Moyes’ team should have had another when Bowen found himself with only Lloris to beat but lost control of the ball.
Craig Dawson saw his header tipped over by Lloris as West Ham threatened again and at last Spurs woke up, as Erik Lamela had a shot saved, Lukasz Fabianski saved well from Kane and Dier headed wide.
But a minute after the restart things got even worse for Mourinho.
Jesse Lingard raced onto Pablo Fornals pass, left Dier standing, and tucked his shot neatly into the far corner.
His effort was initially disallowed for offside but VAR rightly ruled in West Ham’s favour.
Spurs had no option but to pour forward, as Kane cut his free-kick wide, and substitute Gareth Bale’s shot was saved.
Then the Welshman had probably his best moment in a League game yet on his return to Spurs, as his inswinging corner was glanced beautifully in at the near post by Lucas Moura. Game on.
Kane shot an inch wide again as Spurs desperately threw everything at West Ham and then when he pulled the ball back, Bale’s drive clipped off the bar. The Hammers were clinging on and when
Vladimir Coufal tried to clear, the ball bounced up off Heung-min Son and, incredibly, thumped back off the inside of the post.
It was not Jose’s day. Moyes again had made his mark.
For him, the dream is alive. For
Mourinho, the nightmare goes on.
GARETH SOUTHGATE must have felt like cursing under his facemask with Jack Grealish absent and James Maddison limping off in the second half.
But it wasn’t a wasted trip for the England manager as Harvey Barnes starred for Leicester.
First Barnes found Maddison, who curled home a shot from the edge of the box in the 19th minute.
Then attacking-ace Barnes, who made his senior international debut in October, got on the scoresheet himself with his 13th of the season in all competitions.
His pace and direct running were too hot to handle for Villa, as the Foxes held on for a deserved win, despite Bertrand Traore pulling a goal back after the break. Villa have now retrieved just one point from games in which they have conceded first – the lowest in the top-flight.
Dean Smith’s side were noticeably less dangerous without crocked skipper Grealish, who missed his first League game in 15 months with a leg injury.
Out possibly for a month, he is also doubtful for England’s World Cup qualifiers against San Marino, Albania and Poland at the end of March.
Maddison joined Grealish on the injury list when he hobbled off in the second half clutching his hip.
Yet with Barnes on this form, and Jamie Vardy always a threat up front, Leicester are once again on a roll in the race for a Champions League spot.
Brendan Rodgers’ men also have a good chance of reaching the Europa League last-16 when Slavia Prague visit the King Power on Thursday after a goalless first leg.
So 2021 is shaping up to be a vintage year for boss Rodgers, who used his subs shrewdly at Villa Park to shut down the game after a blistering start.
Leicester, who arrived unbeaten away in seven games in the topflight, signalled their intent as Ricardo Pereira shot straight at keeper Emiliano Martinez in the first minute.
Even left-back Luke Thomas had a shot deflected wide as the visitors pushed up.
Villa took until the 17th minute to threaten when Ollie Watkins and Anwar El Ghazi combined to tee-up Traore, but Youri Tielemans and Thomas crowded him out.
The Foxes remained the more dangerous side and deservedly broke the deadlock.
Tielemans played the ball forward and Barnes cleverly laid it off to Maddison to steer a right-foot shot into the bottom corner.
Martinez got a hand to it but couldn’t keep out Maddison’s 11th of the season in all competitions and his fifth in nine League games.
The hosts were struggling