West Ham United 3-1 Chelsea
Premier League, London Stadium, Sunday 20 August 2023, 4.30pm BST
Alphonse Areola was one of a team of heroes as ten man West Ham United earned their first win of the 2023/24 Premier League season with a 3-1 victory over Chelsea at London Stadium.
Before kick-off, both the statistics and recent history suggested West Ham had little chance of winning: the Irons had lost eleven of their previous 16 London derbies, while David Moyes had never beaten Mauricio Pochettino in five previous attempts.
But those statistics and history counted for nothing as Moyes and his team produced a superb performance to send Pochettino and his Blues back to west London with nothing.
Areola kept out Enzo Fernández’s penalty with the scores level at 1-1 just before half-time, setting the platform for a second-half surge led by Michail Antonio and Lucas Paquetá.
James Ward-Prowse also had a debut to remember, providing assists for Nayef Aguerd – who was sent-off with his side leading 2-1 midway through the second half – and Antonio, either side of Carney Chukwuemeka’s well-struck equaliser.
And so it was, 74 days after that balmy night in Prague, on a hot and sunny August afternoon at a sold-out London Stadium, the UEFA Europa Conference League champions returned home with a win that takes Moyes’ side into the top six.
Before kick-off, West Ham marked that success by displaying the trophy pitchside and showing highlights from the final victory over Fiorentina in Prague, while supporters in the Billy Bonds Stand formed a celebratory mosaic as the players emerged from the tunnel.
West Ham took the spirit of Prague into the early stages and took less than seven minutes to go in front. Vladimír Coufal won a corner off Conor Gallagher and debutant James Ward-Prowse illustrated his outstanding dead-ball prowess by curling a delivery to the far post for Nayef Aguerd to head powerfully past Robert Sánchez.
The Claret and Blue Army erupted in celebration, but spent much of the remainder of the first half sat anxiously watching Chelsea build wave after wave of attacks, with lively Senegalese striker Nicolas Jackson and England star Raheem Sterling at the crest of them.
Jackson was denied a penalty by an offside flag when he ran though and appeared to be tripped by Alphonse Areola, then a chance headed over. Then, after a fleeting West Ham raid ended with a Saïd Benrahma shot blocked, Areola saved well from Gallagher and Jackson hooked the rebound too high.
Chelsea’s goal arrived on 29 minutes. West Ham could not clear their lines, twice, and Carney Chukwuemeka took full advantage, dropping shoulder to create space before slamming a shot past Kurt Zouma and Areola and into the home net.
The home side responded and, from another set piece on 37, Tomáš Souček battled and the ball dropped to Paquetá, whose low shot clipped the outside of the post.
The Czech’s contribution was less positive four minutes later, when he fouled Sterling just inside the penalty area, but Areola came to his rescue by pushing away Fernández’s tame spot-kick.
Having kept themselves on level terms, the Irons improved after the break and went in front eight minutes into the second half. A poor clearance from Axel Disasi allowed Ward-Prowse to loft the ball over the top for Antonio, who held off Levi Colwill and slammed an unstoppable drive through Disasi’s legs and past Sánchez’s outstretched right glove.
Pochettino sent on £100m man Moisés Caicedo and switched to a back four, and the home side’s task of holding onto their lead was made more difficult when Aguerd felled Jackson, was shown a second yellow card and sent-off by referee Brooks.
Moyes reacted by sending on Angelo Ogbonna to shore up his defence, then Pablo Fornals and Edson Álvarez to do likewise in midfield, and it did not take the Spaniard long to set up Bowen, who tested compatriot Sánchez from range.
Both teams had opportunities late on, with Fornals being denied by Sánchez, before Areola made a miraculous stop to divert substitute Noni Madueke’s deflected shot past the post.
Four minutes into added time, Paquetá and Emerson combined one final time, the latter was felled by Caicedo and the former sent Sánchez the wrong way from 12 yards. London Stadium erupted once more, and the Hammers had won!
West Ham will hope to continue their unbeaten start to the campaign when they travel to the south coast to face early leaders Brighton & Hove Albion, who have scored back-to-back 4-1 wins to storm to the top of the table, next Saturday teatime.
West Ham United: Areola, Coufal, Zouma ©, Aguerd, Emerson, Ward-Prowse (Álvarez 81), Souček, Bowen, Paquetá, Benrahma (Ogbonna 69), Antonio (Fornals 76)
Subs not used: Fabiański (GK), Johnson, Cresswell, Cornet, Ings, Mubama
Goals: Aguerd 7, Antonio 53, Paquetá 90+5 (pen)
Booked: Aguerd, Paquetá, Emerson
Sent-off: Aguerd
Chelsea: Sánchez, Gusto (Burstow 83), Disasi, Thiago Silva, Colwill, Chilwell © (Caicedo 61), Fernández, Gallagher (Madueke 75), Chukwuemeka (Mudryk 46), Sterling, Jackson
Subs not used: Bergström (GK), Cucurella, Ugochukwu, Maatsen, Humphreys
Goal: Chukwuemeka 29
Booked: Disasi, Chukwuemeka, Jackson
Referee: John Brooks
Attendance: 62,470
