Simons shows promise as Spurs make it three wins from four under Thomas Frank with victory over West Ham | OneFootball

Spurs started life after Daniel Levy with a 3-0 thrashing of West Ham, who were reduced to ten men in the 54th minute when Tomas Soucek was sent off for a violent challenge on Joao Palhinha.

Pap Matar Sarr, Lucas Bergvall and Micky Van de Ven scored in a 17-minute spell after half-time to take Tottenham back to joint leadership of the Premier League with Arsenal, Bournemouth and Liverpool, with the latter playing Burnley on Sunday.

It was all too easy for Spurs, who had Xavi Simons making his debut, the Dutchman looking lively and taking the corner from which Sarr headed home unmarked at the back post in the 47th minute. Soucek’s moment of madness came shortly after with a studs-up lunge on Palhinha that ripped open the midfielder’s sock, and Spurs made it 2-0 soon afterwards when Bergvall got between two defenders to loop a header over Mads Hermansen.

The Swedish teenager then set up Van de Ven to make it 3-0 and prompt an exodus of unhappy home fans for the second time this season, having left in their droves early during West Ham’s home defeat by Chelsea last month.

Although West Ham made life difficult for Spurs with some spirited defending in the first half, they were taken apart easily after the break and it could have been a bigger margin of victory.

A lot rests on Simons’ young shoulders, as the Dutchman is asked to provide the creativity Spurs lack because of long-term injuries for James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski.

Simons started wide on the left and drifted inside, trying to carve openings with subtle crosses and curling shots, one of which was headed away for a corner. Cristian Romero thought he had converted one such set-piece in the 19th minute, but referee Jarred Gillett penalised Van de Ven for a foul in the build-up.

Refereeing supremo Howard Webb has promised a crackdown on wrestling at corners, but perhaps Gillett did not get the memo, as a succession of Spurs corners were marred by bouts of WWE-style grappling which went unpunished.

When Spurs finally did get a shot on target, following a goalmouth scramble after a corner, Mads Hermansen did well to save van de Ven’s shot from close range.

But there was no stopping Sarr two minutes into the second-half, as the Senegalese midfielder was left completely unmarked at the far post to head a Simons corner high into the roof of the net.

It went downhill rapidly after that for the home side. Soucek was sent off in the 54th minute for a studs-up lunge on Joao Palhinha, with the Portuguese midfielder fortunate to escape serious injury from a challenge that ripped open his sock and exposed his shinpad.

And three minutes later Spurs made it 2-0, as Lucas Bergvall drifted between two much taller defenders to meet Romero’s floated forward pass and loop a header over Hermansen.

Unhappy home fans started to drift off, and it became a mass exodus once again in the 64th minute when Bergvall set up van de Ven to fire home from 12 yards with his less favoured right foot.

Graham Potter sent on a couple of substitutes to limit the damage, and Frank sent on Richarlison to replace Simons, who had shown more than enough to suggest he will be a fine addition to Tottenham’s team.