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Tottenham Hotspur's Premier League title hopes were left hanging by a thread as their nine-match winning run ended in a 1-0 defeat at West Ham United.
Manuel Lanzini's scrappy 65th-minute effort decided a derby that Tottenham had largely dominated without ever reaching the levels that had raised hopes of a first title since 1961.
Tottenham could have cut leaders' Chelsea's advantage to one point with a victory but instead the gap will stretch to a seemingly unbridgeable seven with three games left if Chelsea beat struggling Middlesbrough at home on Tuesday (AEST).
"It is not over. It is true that it will be difficult … to catch Chelsea," manager Mauricio Pochettino said.
"Maybe we were a little desperate tonight after they scored.
"Today was a key moment and one of those moments where if you are going to win a title you have to win."
West Ham, the first team to stop Tottenham scoring since Liverpool in early February, moved up to ninth with 42 points and is now mathematically safe from relegation.
Home keeper Adrian frustrated Tottenham with first-half saves in quick succession from Dele Alli and Harry Kane and he also did well to keep out Son Heung-Min after the break as the visitors probed for an opener.
Spurs were stunned though when West Ham broke forward and Aaron Cresswell's cross eventually squirmed its way to Lanzini, who smashed the ball past Hugo Lloris from six metres out to spark wild celebrations around the ground.
West Ham kept Tottenham at arm's length once it went ahead and the final whistle sparked scenes of jubilation around the ground.
"Tonight was great in terms of character and determination but to beat a team like Spurs you need also quality," West Ham manager Slaven Bilic, whose future has been under a cloud, said.
"We showed that in the second half and perhaps deserved to score another goal. Friday night, lights, 60,000 against them, you can't beat that feeling."
Chelsea now needs six points from its last four games to be crowned champions in Antonio Conte's first season in charge.
Spurs, who had not contended for the title for many years, pushed Leicester City close last season before a late-season collapse saw them overtaken by bitter London rivals Arsenal.
This season "St Totteringham's Day" — as Gunners' fans refer to the day each season when Arsenal ensure the club will finish higher on the table than Spurs — cannot happen, since Arsene Wenger's men are 17 points behind with only five games to play.
The only teams that could mathematically catch Spurs (77 points) for second place are Liverpool (69) and Manchester City (66) — the latter have a game in hand — but it is extremely unlikely.
However, Pocchetttino will not want a second-straight late-season fadeout.
Reuters/ABC
Topics: sport, soccer, english-premier, england