Tottenham star Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg has revealed Declan Rice told him nobody liked him during a heated confrontation on the pitch.
West Ham were pushed aside with relative ease by Spurs to leave them in the relegation zone thanks to goals from Emerson Royal and Heung-min Son.
And tempers flared late in the match after a mowing challenge on Ivan Perisic’s Vladimir Coufal led to Rice and Hojbjerg going head-to-head.
Eventually, referee Michael Oliver calmed down on both sides, but not before Rice fired the cheeky insult telling Hojbjerg ‘no one likes you,’ the reporter says Carrie Brownwho asked the Danish international what his opponent had told him.
In the end, it was Tottenham who finished the happiest game of the two sides, with Hojbjerg playing a key role in their opener in the 2-0 win.
A magical pass from Hojbjerg found Ben Davies ten minutes into the second half, which set Emerson up for the opener.
Son, who had been benched, had an instant impact when he replaced Richarlison, combining with Harry Kane to double the lead and give Tottenham all three points.
Speaking to Sky Sports, the South Korea international said: “No one wants to sit on the bench but it’s a decision you have to accept.
“The decision is always made by the manager and I have to accept. I did my best to help the team. I was lucky and I was happy to score.
The three points sees Tottenham leapfrog Newcastle into the Premier League top four following the Magpies’ loss to Liverpool on Saturday.
And he maintains a 100 per cent record for substitute boss Cristian Stellini, who has won victories over Marseille, Manchester City and now West Ham as Antonio Conte continues his absence from the touchline.
The Tottenham assistant coach said: “It was a really difficult first half because it was a game where we had players who were fighting a lot, we choose this type of team for this type of game.
“In the second half they played well, our energy was greater and we produced many situations to score.
“I said that you have to use passion because in this type of game, the moment comes when you can create something.
“In the first half the space was small, in the second half we can stretch them.
“We’ve worked in the pocket with a number ten and sometimes dropping Harry Kane in that space and Harry can create a lot of situations with his quality.”
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