toptop
Ten-man
West Ham recorded a thrilling 3-1 win over rivals Chelsea to leave Mauricio
Pochettino still waiting for his first victory in charge of the west London
club.
Nayef Aguerd nodded West Ham into a seventh-minute lead, taking advantage of
some non-existent Chelsea marking to head home debutant James Ward-Prowse's
inch-perfect corner kick, before Carney Chukwuemeka - later subbed with a knee
injury - levelled with a delicious strike, the 19-year-old's first in the
Premier League.
In fact, the Blues - who resisted the temptation to hand Moises Caicedo his
debut after his recent British-record transfer from Brighton - really should
have gone in ahead at the break, only for Enzo Fernandez to see his poorly
struck penalty saved by Alphonse Areola on the stroke of half-time.
That proved key as against the run of play, Michail Antonio slammed the hosts
back in front eight minutes after half-time and despite Aguerd then seeing red
midway through the second half after a second yellow, the Hammers held on for a
rousing win, sealed by Lucas Pacqeta's stoppage-time penalty after a foul by
Caicedo on Emerson.
Paqueta started for West Ham, with Manchester City's move for the midfielder on
hold because of concerns surrounding an FA and FIFA betting investigation.
West Ham, who handed a late debut to Edson Alvarez, move up to sixth in the
table after their first win of the new campaign, while Chelsea are 15th and
still looking for their first three points of the season.
Player ratings
West Ham: Areola (8), Coufal (6), Aguerd (6), Zouma (6),
Emerson (6), Ward-Prowse (8), Soucek (6), Paqueta (8), Benrahma (6), Bowen (7),
Antonio (7)
Subs: Fornals (6), Ogbonna (6), Alvarez (6)
Chelsea: Sanchez (6), Disasi (6), Colwill (6), Silva (6), Gusto
(6), Chilwell (7), Fernandez (6), Gallagher (6), Sterling (8), Chukwuemeka (8),
Jackson (7)
Subs: Mudryk (5), Maduek (6), Caicedo (6), Burstow (6)
Man of the match: James Ward-Prowse
How West Ham beat Blues in feisty London derby
This was West Ham's first game at the London Stadium since they were crowned
Europa Conference League winners in May and they received a rousing reception
from the home fans ahead of kick-off, with the stadium soon rocking when
debutant Ward-Prowse set up a goal on a plate for Aguerd.
Ward-Prowse was brought to West Ham in part because of his impressive dead-ball
deliveries and he lived up to his reputation when taking his first corner for
his new club by landing the ball straight onto the head of their Morocco
defender, who made no mistake with a towering header at the far post.
However, Pochettino would have been wondering just how the West Ham centre-back
was afforded so much space in a crowded penalty area, although those concerns
did not last long with the visitors soon back in the contest.
Chelsea had already seen strong claims for a penalty when Nicolas Jackson was
wiped out in the box by Areola, only for the Video Assistant Referee to judge
the Chelsea striker as inches offside in the build-up.
A Blues equaliser was coming, though, and it duly arrived just before the
half-hour mark from one of the 28 players to have been signed since Todd
Boehly's arrival, although one who commanded a slightly lower transfer fee than
the British record that bought Caicedo to Stamford Bridge this week.
There appeared little danger when Chukwuemeka gained possession down the left
side of West Ham's area, but from an acute angle, the England U20 international
- signed from Aston Villa last August for £20m - curled home his first Premier
League goal.
The Blues should have gone in ahead at the break after Raheem Sterling went over
the dangling leg offered by Tomas Soucek, but Enzo Fernandes saw his
weakly-struck penalty saved by Areola, before being cleared by the Czech
Republic midfielder, who appeared subsequently to have just been inside the area
when the spot-kick was taken.
Pochettino suffered more injury woe when his young goalscorer was forced off at
half-time with a knee injury and the interval appeared to galvanise the hosts
more than their opponents, with Antonio - supplied by Ward-Prowse - soon
restoring their lead with a thumping finish.
That goal prompted Pochettino to bring on Caicedo for his Blues debut, only for
Aguerd to set up a tense finale after chopping down Jackson to leave referee
John Brooks with no alternative but to send him off with a quarter of the game
still to play.
And when Caicedo brought down Emerson late on, the Brazil midfielder rolled home
a 95th-minute penalty to seal the win.
What's next?
West Ham's next game is away to Brighton in the Premier League on Saturday, live
on Sky Sports - kick-off 5.30pm.
The Hammers then travel to Luton on Friday September 1, live on Sky Sports -
kick-off 8pm.
Chelsea are next in action on Friday when they host Luton in the Premier League,
live on Sky Sports - kick-off 8pm.
The Blues then take on AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup at Stamford Bridge on
Wednesday August 30 - kick-off 7.45pm.
Teams
West Ham United Areola; Coufal, Zouma (c), Aguerd, Emerson;
Soucek, Paqueta; Bowen, Ward-Prowse (Alvarez 81), Benrahma (Ogbonna 69); Antonio
(Fornals 76)
Subs Not Used Fabianski, Johnson, Cresswell, Cornet, Ings,
Mubama
Booked Aguerd, Paqueta, Emerson
Sent Off Aguerd 68
Goals Aguerd 7, Antonio 53, Paqueta 90+5 (pen)
Chelsea Sanchez; Disasi, Silva, Colwill; Gusto (Burstow 83),
Enzo, Gallagher (Madueke 75), Chukwuemeka (Mudryk 46), Chilwell (c) (Caicedo
61); Sterling, Jackson
Subs Not Used Bergstrom, Cucurella, Maatsen, Humphreys,
Ugochukwu
Booked Disasi, Chukwuemeka, Jackson
Goals Chukuemeka 29
Attendance 62,470
Referee John Brooks
VAR Paul Tierney