9th March, 2008

KB: KUMB; HM Hammers Mad; ST Sunday Times; SE Sunday Express; SM Sunday Mirror; OB Observer;
DM Daily Mirror; GU Guardian; TM Times; HD Hammers Diary; SK Sky; DE Daily Express

Sky Sports: The Hammers paired Dean Ashton and Bobby Zamora up front but, despite the latter being unfortunate with an early chance, they made little impact throughout. Zamora took advantage of a Paul Robinson fumble but saw his finish loop over off team-mate Boa Morte. Spurs were ahead after eight minutes, although Curbishley was protesting to fourth official Uriah Rennie near the tunnel and missed Berbatov's opener. The Hammers boss was furious that Jonathan Spector, in place of injured Matthew Upson, had been penalised for a foul on Berbatov. Huddlestone swung over a free-kick from the right flank and Berbatov's header on the penalty spot skidded past Green into the far corner. The Spurs pair combined again three minutes later from the opposite flank with the same outcome. Berbatov's header this time beating Green at the near post.

BBC Sport: The result could have been very different had West Ham taken advantage of another piece of ungainly goalkeeping from Paul Robinson in the fifth minute. The England shot-stopper could only parry Freddie Ljungberg's 25-yard effort, although he was alert enough to prevent Dean Ashton from pouncing on the loose ball. Robinson also dived at the feet of Boa Morte before Bobby Zamora's shot was deflected over towards the end of a mad scramble.

Hammers Mad: Alan Curbishley's team suffered their third 4-0 defeat on the spin and their chances of qualifying for European football have now all but faded away. However, the visitors could have opened the scoring after four minutes when Freddie Ljungberg's shot was fumbled by Paul Robinson in the Tottenham goal. Boa Morte eventually got to the rebound but saw his shot deflected over the bar. Tottenham made them pay when they broke the deadlock on eight minutes. Tom Huddlestone's free-kick picked out Berbatov who rose above Anton Ferdinand to head the ball past Robert Green and into the corner of the net. Things got even better for the home side when they added a second just three minutes later. It was a carbon-copy of the first goal as Huddlestone's free-kick once again picked out Berbatov who found himself free in the box and the Bulgarian directed his header past the West Ham keeper.

KUMB: So, with Spurs barely getting the ball out of their half we then went 1-0 down and it was a goal that had “stupid” written all the way through it. Berbatov backed in and backed in on Spector then threw himself forward in the way that everyone knows he does with the exception it seems of premiership referees. Just for once I must agree with Fergie and ask exactly what it is that Keith Hackett does for his money. Ferdinand fell asleep as Huddlestone’s cross found Berbatov’s run – from an offside position - unchecked and the header gave Green no chance. Things went from bad to worse a couple of minutes later. Ljungberg gave away a foul on the right and once more Ferdinand was napping as Berbatov placed an identical header past Green. There we were, all the good work of the first few minutes undone by naivety and lax defending. The rest of the half was dismal. The heads were down and we made a side as mediocre as Spurs look almost average. Then there was Luis Boa Morte. Now he can’t tackle. You know it. I know it. It appears that the only person in the world who knows it is the man himself. To be fair to him it looked like he’d actually won the ball for the challenge that gave him his initial yellow card. However, even if that were the case, you’d think he’d have the nous to figure that if he was going to pick up a card for a challenge that had won the ball, the ref sure as hell wasn’t going to worry too much about issuing a second. It certainly occurred to Spurs who started targeting him at corners. They needn’t have bothered. The ref allowed play to continue after one reckless slide failed to connect with anyone but a late and pointless lunge at Lennon was the final straw and out popped the second yellow and off went LBM. A few seconds before the red card I had proffered the opinion that LBM wouldn’t be on for the second half. I was, unfortunately, right – though I had a substitution more in mind if I’m honest. (Gordon Thrower, 10th March, 2008)

Daily Mirror: Curbishley even took the unusual step of naming and shaming Anton Ferdinand as the defender who was supposed to mark Berbatov but lost him on both occasions. It is almost the unwritten rule in the managerial code not to name the offender and Arsene Wenger has only done it once in his 12 years as Arsenal manager when he singled out Nelson Vivas for costing them the title in 1999. But Ferdinand got it in the neck yesterday - even more than pantomime villain Luis Boa Morte who was sent off a minute before half-time for a second yellow card for persistent fouling. Curbishley said: "Anton has got to dig in. He gave a penalty away against Chelsea very early on and can't allow forwards free headers. Berbatov has got one and then another." At least, according to Curbishley, Boa Morte had shown determination amid his madness, even if it meant West Ham played the second half with 10 men, although he added: "What could go wrong is going wrong at the moment." But Curbishley could have got stuck into most of his players as they simply did not turn up. It was little wonder the West Ham fans were chanting midway through the first half: "You're s*** if you can't beat us 4-0." (John Cross, 10th March, 2008)

The Times: Berbatov put them ahead after eight minutes, glancing a header low into the corner from Tom Huddlestone’s free kick. Only two minutes later, Spurs were two ahead with a mirror image of that goal. This time Huddlestone’s free kick was from the left and Berbatov escaped Anton Ferdinand to nod his second of the match and his nineteenth of the season. “Another set-play has gone in, and then another one,” Curbishley said. “Anton was specifically designated to mark Berbatov and he has got to dig in. You can’t allow centre forwards toget free headers.” With Boa Morte booked and continuing to get involved in niggling fouls, things looked distinctly unpromising for the visiting team. Sure enough, the Portuguese was shown a second yellow card after 44 minutes for a foul on Aaron Lennon. Curbishley declined to offer him a consoling handshake on his way off, but the manager should have seen it coming – everyone else inside White Hart Lane had – and withdrawn him. “He was on thin ice, but he’s an experienced player and I was hoping to get through to half-time and settle him down,” Curbishley said. “I asked for more application and he has been done for his persistence.” (Nick Szczepanik, 10th March, 2008)

The Guardian: Alan Curbishley's features have long been an incongruous combination of the boyish and the crumpled. He looks like a middle-aged actor playing an adolescent. These days, however, he is more worried about being typecast as a losing manager. Consecutive 4-0 defeats by Liverpool and Chelsea - what, one wonders, would Barnsley pile up against them - was followed yesterday by another beating by the same scoreline at the hands of a Spurs side who showed little sign of being distracted by Wednesday's Uefa Cup second-leg tie against PSV. West Ham have conceded 12 goals and scored none in three matches in nine days. It is the sort of slump Charlton supporters used to associate with Curbishley during his generally impressive career at The Valley. It would be harsh to say his job at Upton Park is on the line. Last season he pulled them out of a steep dive towards relegation and before yesterday's match the club had taken 40 points from 28 games, double the number that had been won from the same number of matches last season. If they fail to win another point they are probably safe from relegation. But the worry about Curbishley runs deeper than the desperate results of the past week. He has accumulated a large squad of long-toothed players and too many of them spend too much time in the treatment room. When those players return from injury they are not match fit and, more worrying, they tend to get injured again. Yesterday Scott Parker, who can be pivotal in midfield, made his first appearance since December while Bobby Zamora started a game for the first time since August. Both were horribly off the pace. The questionable quality of Curbishley's purchases is a more considerable concern than the recent run of results. There was also a problem yesterday with Luis Boa Morte who was sent off for the seventh time in English football for wild lunges at Tom Huddlestone and, just before half-time, Aaron Lennon. (Paul Weaver, 10th March, 2008)

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