Tottenham v West Ham: Count on Kane to seal derby win

• Tottenham have won three of their last four home games against West Ham

• Harry Kane has netted in eight of his last 10 home Premier League games

• Kane can score and help land a Bet Builder at 5.14/1

Tottenham without Conte again

Tottenham aren't exactly sailing in smooth waters at the moment. They've lost four of their last seven games in all competitions, including defeats in in their latest two, while manager Antonio Conte has been told to stay in Italy as he recovers from surgery.

Assistant coach Cristian Stellini once again did media duties on Friday, explaining that Conte had rushed back too soon after having his gall bladder removed. Stellini added that the pair are speaking probably "three times a day", with Conte clearly keen to check that preparations are going well.

Spurs certainly have claims to be one of the most curious teams in the Premier League. They seem to lose plenty of games and yet entered the weekend in fifth place and with a chance to go fourth.

Their attention turned to the Champions League on Tuesday where a 1-0 defeat away to AC Milan was far from ideal but still left them with a good chance to make it through to the last eight.

But that loss represented another setback following their 4-1 thumping against Leicester at the King Power Stadium last weekend.

Prior to that, Spurs had showed their Jekyll and Hyde nature by scoring a 1-0 win over a Manchester City side that has since gone on to top the table by beating Arsenal in midweek.

Hammers starting to turn a corner

The image of David Moyes looking perplexed on a touchline was a common one earlier in the season as the Hammers suffered 11 defeats before the calendar turned.

But so far in 2023, West Ham have won three, drawn three and lost just once in seven games.

They've shown their mettle in the last two, holding fourth-placed Newcastle to a 1-1 draw at St James' Park and again fighting back from going a goal down to repeat that same scoreline against Chelsea at the London Stadium last weekend. Some would add here, thanks to a great save from Tomas Soucek.

"We are starting to be a bit more resilient, which is good," said Moyes. "There's signs of players getting back to their best form."

However, draws don't accelerate a side up the table and West Ham finished the latest round of fixtures in 16th place and just two points clear of the drop zone.

As for team news, Moyes revealed in his press conference that Brazilian star Lucas Paqueta is out while defender Nayef Aguerd "has got a chance, but we're not sure". Losing both would be a definite blow.

Spurs more boom than bust at home

West Ham seem to like a 1-1 draw and that was the score against Tottenham earlier in the season. A Thilo Kehrer own goal gave Spurs the lead before Soucek struck after the break to earn a share of the spoils.

Spurs have won three of the last four head-to-heads in all competitions at the Tottenham Hotspur and it would be four in four but for the remarkable finish in October 2020 when West Ham came from 3-0 down with eight minutes to play to somehow draw 3-3.

Last season a double from Heung-Min Son secure a 3-1 victory for the hosts.

For Sunday's game, Tottenham are 1.865/6 to bank three points while West Ham are 4.84/1 for the win. A Draw is 3.8514/5.

One jumpout stat when looking at the extended Premier League table is that Spurs are yet to draw a home game. It's certainly been more boom and bust though as they've won seven and lost four.

The defeats have come to Newcastle, Liverpool, Aston Villa and Arsenal so, in general, they've lost to the better teams and beaten ones you'd expect them to.

I'm certainly leaning towards a home win given that observation and a couple of West Ham stats support it. The Hammers have lost their last five away London derbies while they've scored fewer goals on the road than bottom pair Bournemouth and Southampton.

Overall, West Ham have managed just a single Premier League away win this season while they've lost seven of the other 10. Even if focusing on more recent form, they've taken just two points from the last 12 on their travels.

Kane can boost price in Bet Builder

Harry Kane has scored in eight of his last 10 Premier League home games and boasts a brilliant record in London derbies.

The England man got the winner in Tottenham's latest home fixture - the 1-0 triumph over Manchester City - while he's got three in his last three matches against West Ham at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

I won't overcomplicate this so the advice, quite simply, is to back Kane to score in a Spurs win at 2.68/5. Such a bet has landed in six of the home games the striker has scored in, the only losers coming when his goals counted for nothing against Newcastle and Liverpool.

Kane has also scored the opening goal in seven Premier League games this season, more than any other player.

Therefore, I'll add in Kane to score first in a Spurs win at 5.14/1.

Opta stat

Only once in the last eight seasons have West Ham avoided defeat in both Premier League meetings with Tottenham, doing so in 2020/21. In that campaign, they came from 3-0 down in the last 10 minutes to draw 3-3 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.