Slaven Bilic: Tottenham can win the Premier League

Tottenham Hotspur drew West Ham in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup yesterday, but they’ll travel to London Stadium this Saturday in the first Premier League meeting between the two sides. West Ham manager Slaven Bilic, who is reportedly friends with Spurs’ Mauricio Pochettino, was full of praise for the way Spurs play in today’s pre-match press conference.

Here’s what Bilic said when asked about whether Tottenham are the best team in the league.

“You have a few teams, it varies but I still think they are, yes. They play the most attractive football and are definitely one of the contenders to win the league.

“They also have a few good new players, especially young ones, and they are definitely the best team in the league, if not, at least the most attractive one.”

That’s a very nice thing to hear, but Spurs have a bit of work to do to prove it, after home draws against Burnley and Swansea City in their opening series of fixtures.

Bilic went on to hint that he might set up his West Ham side to play on the counterattack, much like Burnley and Swansea did early in the season, but that he doesn’t expect Spurs to be particularly vulnerable this season in Wembley Stadium.

“[Spurs] are very good at the back. They don’t give you many chances but, as we showed last season, we created a lot in that game. We tried to get the ball off them as high as possible and break quick, which was really good.

“It happened to us [struggling at home in a new stadium] in the first part of last season. It happens to all clubs but the first season, it affects you. Maybe it is just a bad spell or bad luck. They won in the Champions League though so have no worries.”

Spurs haven’t lost to West Ham at home since 2013, but as befitting a London derby, the match-up is usually competitive and Spurs have trouble on the road. Spurs are 4-5-1 against the Hammers in their last 10 matches and have lost three of their last four to West Ham on the road.