New man Eric Dier struck late to hand Pochettino a win in his first competitive start at Spurs after a game that saw two red cards, a missed penalty and a fan taken costless kick.
Neither side started the game in the ascendancy with both teams seemingly content to see how the other would react. Tottenham had the lion's share of possession in the opening exchanges but the only real chances came from the right hand side of the West Ham attack, where Stewart Downing seemed intent on single handedly putting Spurs shaky defence to the sword. His hard work would have paid off on several occasions had Carlton Cole been able to control the football rather than trip over his own feet.
However a slew of missed opportunities by Cole seemed irrelevant when Kyle Naughton was sent off in the 30th minute by Chris Foy who, after heavy discussion with his assistant referee, deemed the full back had intentionally handled the ball in the area. West Ham fans would have been forgiven for thinking that victory was almost assured when the usually ever reliable Mark Noble stepped up to the spot. The West Ham midfielder, who has not missed a single penalty since 2009, dragged his shot wide to the relief of an astonished Lloris who had dived in the wrong direct.
West Ham were not disheartened however and the following minutes saw them lay siege to the Spurs goal which, if not for some incredibly poor finishing, should really have been breached on several occasions. Neither side made any changes at half time and the siege continued as a shaky looking Spurs defence sustained wave after wave of West Ham attack, mostly through the outlet of Stewart Downing. When changes where made however they made all the difference. Pochettino in a desperate roll of the dice brought on the tireless Holtby and Townsend, who's combined wing play allowed Spurs to gain a foothold in the game. Their renewed persistence paid off when Collins was shown a second yellow for a cynical body check of Adebayor. The resulting costless kick was ballooned over the bar by a disappointed Christian Eriksen but not before it was sent flying towards goal by a pitch invader, who challenged Adrian more than the Danish international managed all game.
The remainder of the match descended into a game of chess with each side content to sit back and play on the counter hoping to expose each other on the break. West Ham were nearly the victors when the ever present Downing bundled the ball through the Tottenham back line only to be denied by a brilliant save from Lloris, who had sprinted of his line in a bid to save his side. The save was telling however as when, only minutes later, deep into extra time Spurs broke on West Ham and the recently substituted Kane played Dier in on goal with a tantalising ball. The young English U21 player showed incredible composure to round the West Ham keeper and slide the ball into the back of the net. With no time for West Ham to get back into the game the referee blew the whistle to bring to an end a game that West Ham really should have won and Spurs will be wondering how they came away with all three points.
VAVEL Ratings
| West Ham United | Tottenham Hotspur | ||
 |  |  |  |
| Adrian | 6 | Lloris | 7.5 |
| O'Brien | 6 | Naughton | 4 |
| Reid | 5.5 | Dier | 8 |
| Collins | 4.5 | Kaboul | 5.5 |
| Cresswell | 6.5 | Rose | 4.5 |
| Nolan | 6 | Capoue | 6.5 |
| Noble | 6 | Bentaleb | 6.5 |
| Kouyate | 7 | Eriksen | 6 |
| Downing | 8.5 | Lennon | 5.5 |
| Cole | 4 | Lamela | 5 |
| Vaz Te | 5 | Adebayor | 5.5 |
| Substitutes | |||
| Valencia | 5 | Kane | 6.5 |
| Diame | 5 | Townsend | 6.5 |
| Demel | 5.5 | Holtby | 6 |