After a fortnight spent stewing over the meltdown at Brighton this was the perfect remedy for Ange Postecoglou.
Not simply three precious points in a London derby, but a victory to answer questions about spirit and character, having fought back from behind in a brisk transformation sparked by a bold substitution.
Postecoglou sent on Pape Matar Sarr for James Maddison when the scores were level at 1-1 at half time and restored a better balance in Tottenham’s midfield.
His team came out and scored three goals inside eight minutes through Yves Bissouma and Heung-min Son, either side of an own goal by the hapless Jean-Clair Todibo, as Dejan Kulusevski orchestrated it all from midfield.
This time it was West Ham who crumbled to the dismay of Julen Lopetegui whose team finished with 10 men, with Mohammed Kudus sent off for pushing Micky van de Ven in the face during a late skirmish.
It was Kudus who gave West Ham the lead much earlier in the game, arriving unmarked at the back post to sweep in a low cross from Jarrod Bowen. It was not the first time the two wingers had combined to create problems for the Spurs fullbacks.
Guglielmo Vicario had saved from Kudus only seven minutes earlier. Again, Bowen was the instigator but the finish by Kudus was too close to the goalkeeper and Vicario was able to beat it away. This time, there was no mistake.
Spurs had several opportunities to clear the danger before the ball landed at the feet of Bowen. He wriggled clear of Destiny Udogie and cut the ball low to the Kudus who was completely unmarked. Pedro Porro was back on the goal line, unable to block the shot, and Brennan Johnson was too late on the cover.
Brighton had given Tottenham problems in wide areas. The collapse from two-up to lose 3-2 had been inspired by damage done by wingers Kaoru Mitoma and Yankuba Minteh. Udogie had a torrid second half that day.
Here, Bowen and Kudus were always dangerous, but Spurs fought their way back into the game by half time.
Brennan Johnson, who flashed a volley wide when the game was goalless, went close again with an attempted header that skidded off his shoulder and dropped narrowly wide. And Alphonse Areola saved a deflected effort by Porro before conceding the equaliser.
Maddison broke out of midfield with the ball and picked out Kulusevski, who jinked inside from the right onto his left foot and beat Areola with a low drive which fizzed off the inside of both uprights before spinning into the net.
Postecoglou sent on Sarr and Spurs instantly found a happier balance. This was the make up of their midfield for most of last season. One deep, one playmaker and Sarr, putting in the miles, adding bite and generally getting through lots of the unsung work.
This season, in search of more creativity, it has usually been Maddison and Kulusevski with one deep midfielder, on this occasion Bissouma. But the introduction of Sarr at half-time swung the game Tottenham’s way with a rapid flurry of three goals.
The first of them converted by Bissouma, who arrived in the penalty box to guide a cut-back from Udogie through a crowd of legs for his second of the season.
Then one with a slice of fortune. Son started a slick move in midfield, traded passes with Kulusevski, collected the return and went for goal. Areola struck out a boot to block the shot but it ricocheted off Todibo and into the net.
Then, Son claimed Tottenham’s fourth on the break, isolating Todibo, sidestepping him with ease and beating Areola at his near post. West Ham were all at sea. Lopetegui made three changes to stem the tide but his side almost conceded a fifth when Son thumped a shot against the foot of a post.
From here, there was chances at both ends. Kudus was twice denied. Once by a block from Udogie on the line then a save by Vicario before he lost the plot and was sent off for losing his discipline in a late skirmish.
Kudus sparked the incident with a foul on Van de Ven, kicked him in the back as they were both on the ground and then jumped up, pushed the Spurs defender in the face and for good measure pushed Sarr in the face as others rushed to get involved.
The only real surprise was that it took a VAR intervention before referee Andy Madley pulled out his red card, but it was a shame for Kudus to ruin what had been a fine individual performance in this way.
