Of all the steps that led Tottenham from White Hart Lane to Wembley and back again, the most important came in February, 2011, when West Ham were named as the preferred bidders for the Olympic Stadium after an acrimonious battle with their London rivals.

Had the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) opted for Spurs instead, the Hammers would be making the short trip across east London to face their new neighbours tomorrow, rather than travelling to Haringey, where Mauricio Pochettino’s side are aiming to maintain their 100 per cent start at their magnificent new home.

A few months after the OPLC’s decision, Spurs committed to rebuilding White Hart Lane. The club’s board have since observed the London Stadium’s many problems with knowing smiles because they predicted most of the issues, including warning that supporters would be too far from the pitch.

Spurs chairman Daniel Levy had proposed tearing down the Olympic Stadium and rebuilding a football ground, while continuing the Games’ legacy by renovating Crystal Palace athletics stadium. At the time, Spurs estimated the project at around £250m — some £200m cheaper than rebuilding in Tottenham. They have since spent roughly £1billion, leaving the club saddled with more than £600m debt.

Had they moved to Stratford, Spurs would now boast a similarly impressive stadium, with far less financial baggage, leaving them in a position to challenge the Premier League’s financial superpowers more quickly.

The human cost, for both the club and the capital, would have been immeasurable, however. Many Spurs fans were fiercely opposed to the plans and MP for Tottenham, David Lammy, believes relocation would have been catastrophic for Haringey, the fifth most deprived borough in London.

“The club is an important beacon of hope in the constituency,” said Lammy. “That’s why I fought very hard with Daniel Levy when the club proposed to go to the Olympic Stadium.”

Since deciding to stay in Tottenham, Levy has embraced the concept of regeneration. He wants the stadium to be a new venue for business and entertainment, while boosting education, jobs and housing in the area. Spurs have already built 258 “affordable” new homes, which could rise to 1,200, two schools and shops and created some 2,508 jobs, with more to come.

“The club has a clear role to play,” added Lammy. “The stadium is a huge catalyst for investment in the area. I would expect to see Tottenham really up there in the investment stakes over the months and years ahead. I would hope local businesses and people benefit from the catalysing effect of the stadium.”

Despite the clash with Levy, Lammy believes the chairman now deserves credit. “Daniel and I have not always agreed, but I have always had tremendous respect for him,” Lammy said. “He’s very single-minded, bright, shrewd, consistent and he’s passionate about the club. When others have fallen away, he’s still standing. He wanted to renew that stadium. There were a lot of doubters, he had to deal with an economic downturn and it wasn’t always clear he would succeed. And, nearly a decade later, here we are. This is a moment, definitely, to give him the full respect he deserves.”

For West Ham, who are similarly committed to regeneration in Stratford, the 2011 decision was a sweet victory over their bitter rivals, but eight years later both clubs believe they have had the last laugh.

Karren Brady, West Ham’s vice-chairman, has taunted Spurs and, in December last year, she claimed Levy would be “green with envy” over the Hammers’ taxpayer-funded, cost-effective home, where they pay just £2.5m in rent per year. Spurs believe their world-class stadium will quickly pay for itself and they are already making £800,000 per game from restaurants alone.

Certainly, any neutral would prefer to spend an afternoon at Spurs’s breathtaking new home rather than the London Stadium, which still does not feel like a pure football ground. But stadia do not win matches, teams do, and while Spurs could be facing up to a decade of relative austerity while repaying their debts, West Ham are in a position to spend another £100m this summer.

For the Hammers, capitalising on this short-term advantage over their rivals is essential, because at the moment everyone connected to Spurs believes that 2011 defeat was one of the best things to happen to the club.