Unbeaten in the league since the arrival of Antonio Conte on the bench in early November, Tottenham (6th place with 30 points) fell from 5th place in favor of West Ham (31 points), victorious over Watford (4-1) in the afternoon.

Led in the 25th minute after a goal from James Ward-Prowse, the Spurs equalized on a penalty from Harry Kane (41st), after a poorly controlled tackle and the expulsion of Mohammed Salisu.

Despite a clear domination (13 shots in the penalty area in the second of the period), they could not be precise enough and were refused two goals, one of which was for an offside of a few centimeters from Kane.

After taking just one point in their last three games, West Ham has recovered well at Watford.

Led from the fourth minute of play after a goal from Emmanuel Denis, the surprise team of this first half of the season was able to turn the tide in just two minutes by Tomas Soucek (27th), then Saïd Benrahma (29th), before Mark Noble from the penalty spot (58th) and Nikola Vlasic (90 + 2) did not secure the victory in the second half.

Without his trainer Patrick Vieira, who tested positive for Covid, Crystal Palace easily won against the red lantern Norwich (3-0) thanks in particular to goals from Odsonne Edouard and Jean-Philippe Mateta.

The joy of Saïd Benrahma, author of the second goal for West Ham United during the London derby against Watford at Vicarage Road, December 28, 2021 Ian KINGTON AFP

The day continues Tuesday evening with Leicester - Liverpool (9:00 p.m.).

Several postponements

Two meetings scheduled for Tuesday have been postponed due to many positive cases of Covid: Arsenal-Wolverhampton and Leeds-Aston Villa.

103 tests administered to the players and staff of the twenty English Premier League clubs between December 20 and 26 were positive, unheard of since the start of the pandemic.

The specter of further restrictive measures in the stadiums, however, appears to have receded in the near term, with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson indicating that no further announcements will be made before the end of the year.

While fifteen league fixtures have been postponed since December 12, several coaches, including Brendan Rodgers (Leicester) and Jürgen Klopp (Liverpool) have again criticized the end-of-year schedule, which traditionally provides for two days in space. 48 hours, December 26 and 28.

© 2021 AFP