Two of English football’s fiercest rivals will descend on Western Australia in July, with West Ham United United set to face Isuzu UTE A-League club Perth Glory at Optus Stadium before taking on Tottenham Hotspur in a London derby Down Under.
Glory will host the Hammers at Optus Stadium on Saturday, July 15 in the first of the two fixtures, before Spurs and West Ham go head-to-head at the same venue on Tuesday, July 18.
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It’s just the second visit to Australia in club history for West Ham after visiting the nation for a four-match tour in 1995. The Irons were scheduled to take part in the Queensland Champions Cup in mid-2020, only for the COVID-19 pandemic to postpone those plans.
There’s strong links between the Premier League side and Australia, with the likes of Stan Lazaridis, Steve Mautone, Hayden Fox, Trent McClenahan and Lucas Neill all playing in Claret and Blue – not to mention current Glory assistant coach Chris Coyne and former head coach Richard Garcia.
Promising West Australian striker Dylan Tombides was a graduate from the club’s academy and featured once for West Ham’s first team in 2012 before tragically passing away from testicular cancer in 2014 at just 20 years of age. The DT38 Foundation operates out of Perth in Tombides’ legacy.
Seven years have passed since Tottenham’s last Australian voyage; the North London club visited twice in two years under former head coach Mauricio Pochettino, to Sydney in 2015 and Melbourne in 2016.
Tottenham and West Ham will arrive in Perth almost two months after the end of the current Premier League campaign, using the tour as part of pre-season preparation for season 2023-24 – and so much can change for both clubs between Thursday’s announcement and the start of the Perth tour in July.
Tottenham are currently fourth on the Premier League table, but there’s growing belief head coach Antonio Conte is close to departing the club; a turbulent season took an ugly turn on the weekend after a late collapse to bottom-placed Southampton which led Conte to criticise his players and the club’s ownership in an extraordinary press conference.
With his contract up at the end of the season, it appears increasingly unlikely the Italian will be on board the plane to Perth in July.
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There’s also question marks surrounding the future of the club’s all-time leading goalscorer and England captain Harry Kane, with external noise suggesting the 29-year-old should be seeking the exit door after another season without lifting a trophy at the London club.
West Ham’s situation is even more precarious as the current Premier League campaign speeds toward its conclusion. David Moyes’ side finished seventh last season – now, they’re in the relegation zone, one point behind Leicester City in 17th.
Akin to Kane, there are strong reports linking England international Declan Rice to a move at the end of the season as a genuine relegation threat presents to the club which has recorded back-to-back finishes inside the top seven on the Premier League table.
For Perth, meanwhile, this is the third meeting in recent years between the club and Premier League opposition, after taking on Chelsea and Manchester United at Optus Stadium in 2018 and 2019 respectively.
Glory CEO Anthony Radich says it’s an exciting opportunity to welcome WA-based West Ham fans, as well as those from interstate and overseas, to the state’s 60,000+ capacity sporting hub.
“It is a great honour for Perth Glory to have the opportunity to play against another high-profile English club with such pedigree and tradition,” Radich said.
“As a club, we cannot wait to be involved and I’m sure our Members, fans, players and staff will be excited to be a part of what promises to be an equally memorable football event.
“We look forward to welcoming West Ham fans from WA, interstate and the rest of the world and coming together to create a fantastic atmosphere at what is a magnificent venue.”
