Late Lennon strike sinks West Ham

West Ham 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur ( Carlton Cole 49’/ Jermain Defoe 54′, Aaron Lennon 79′)

A late goal from winger Aaron Lennon allowed Tottenham Hotspur to emerge triumphant in their London derby against West Ham United at Upton Park today afternoon. The result means Spurs have now won their first three games of their season- a feat last achieved by Bill Nicholson’s trophy winning 1960/61 side.

The Hammers were the better side in the first half, and Cole missed two very good chances to put the East London outfit ahead. First, he had Spurs keeper Carlo Cudicini at his mercy but did not take advantage, and then he failed to get on the end of a cross from Junior Stanislas. Spurs had Ledley King hitting the crossbar from a set piece, but there was nothing else worthy of mention from Harry Redknapp’s side in the first half.

It was Cole who put West Ham ahead on 49 minutes, firing one left footed from outside the box. Cudicini took note of it a little too late, and the power behind Cole’s shot saw it fly into the net.

However Cole ruined his afternoon with a horrendous backpass that brought Spurs back into the game. He gave the ball away to Jermain Defoe, and his team mates could only watch in horror as Defoe blasted it past Robert Green.

Neither side really looked like getting a second goal, but Spurs started to dominate possession and finally made their pressure count when Jonathan Spector slipped in his effort to stop Aaron Lennon. The winger found some space in the box, and fired one left footed to leave Upton Park stunned. As the final whistle blew, Cole slumped to the ground in dismay, knowing that he had been both the hero and the villain in the same game.

It was a disappointing result for Gianfranco Zola’s side, who matched their rivals for most of the game. West Ham now host Millwall in the League Cup on Tuesday, while Spurs travel to Doncaster Rovers on Wednesday.

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