1. Front three on fire (again)
For the second consecutive weekend, West Ham United’s front three were on top form at London Stadium.
Just as they did in the 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers seven days previously, Jarrod Bowen, Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paquetá combined to devastating effect to see off Manchester United.
Bowen and Kudus both found the target again to move onto 12 and nine goals for the season respectively, with Paquetá setting up both.
With all three able to play in a variety of positions, the trio afforded manager David Moyes a tactical fluidity that enabled him to move Bowen to the right and Kudus and Paquetá to central positions, from where they combined to break the deadlock and shoot the Hammers to a valuable 2-0 victory.
2. Back-to-back clean sheets at last!
For the first time since October 2021, West Ham United have kept back-to-back clean sheets in the Premier League matches.
There were 83 games and 26 months between 1-0 victories over Everton and Tottenham Hotspur and the 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers and Saturday’s 2-0 success against Manchester United.
Captain Kurt Zouma led by example with seven vital clearances, while his centre-back partner Dinos Mavropanos hardly put a foot wrong and full-backs Vladimír Coufal and Emerson played with their normal combination of defensive commitment and attacking verve.
Behind them, Alphonse Areola was unbeatable while in front of them Edson Álvarez was solid as a rock, restricting the Red Devils to just three shots on target in the entire game.
With the front five pressing and working hard for their team defensively, too, the result was a clean sheet that David Moyes and his players could be proud of.
3. Red Devils defeated
West Ham United victories over Manchester United in the Premier League are not unheard of, but Saturday’s win was certainly a rare achievement.
Since first meeting in the competition in 1993, the Hammers have defeated the Red Devils on just nine occasions from 55 attempts.
The two most recent of those nine wins have come in 2023, with David Moyes getting the better of Erik ten Hag in May, when Saïd Benrahma’s shot squirmed past David de Gea to secure a vital 1-0 victory, then again in December, when Jarrod Bowen and Mohammed Kudus struck in the second half to earn a 2-0 success.
4. A memorable year at London Stadium
As 2023 draws to a close, West Ham United can reflect on a job well done at London Stadium this year.
The Hammers’ victory over Manchester United was their 17th in 26 matches on home turf in 2023, to go along with five draws and just four defeats in all competitions, with 53 goals scored and just 26 conceded.
Everton, Nottingham Forest (twice), AEK Larnaca, Southampton, KAA Gent, Manchester United (twice), AZ Alkmaar, Leeds United, Chelsea, FK TSC, Sheffield United, Arsenal, Olympiacos, SC Freiburg and Wolverhampton Wanderers have all left E13 empty-handed.
In all, with a trip to Arsenal to come on 28 December, West Ham have won 31 competitive games in 2023 – the second-highest tally in the Club’s history behind the Second Division title-winning year of 1981.
Merry Christmas!
