LONDON STADIUM — Chelsea were beaten 3-2 by West Ham in their Saturday lunchtime derby, a defeat which presented Manchester City and Liverpool with an opportunity to overtake Thomas Tuchel’s side in the Premier League table this weekend.
West Ham copied Chelsea’s formation at London Stadium and for large parts of the game matched their quality and intensity, although they trailed in the first half when Thiago Silva headed the visitors into a 1-0 lead after 28 minutes.
Edouard Mendy then gifted West Ham a way back into the match when fouling Jarrod Bowen, but after Manuel Lanzini levelled from the spot in the 40th minute, just four minutes later Mason Mount superbly volleyed Chelsea back in front.
After the break, Bowen equalised with a strike from the edge of the area, a goal which meant Chelsea conceded twice in a game for the first time in the Premier League this season.
It was also just the third occasion in 53 matches where Chelsea have conceded more than once under Tuchel.
Bowen almost scored again for the hosts, but the home fans were soon in raptures when Arthur Masuaku’s deflected cross beat Mendy at his near post for the winner.
The defeat means Chelsea remain top for now, but Liverpool can go first with a win at Wolves, while Manchester City need victory at Watford on Saturday evening to then go top themselves.
West Ham are fourth, and the dramatic late win means they cannot be leapfrogged by either Arsenal or Tottenham.
West Ham vs Chelsea player ratings
West Ham: Lukasz Fabianski 7 – A busy first half saw Fabianski make four saves, but he may be disappointed to have let in Silva’s header and Mount’s volley, with the latter squeezing past him inside the near post.
Craig Dawson 7 – A couple of vital challenges on an afternoon of little respite for West Ham’s defence.
Kurt Zouma 7 – Jeered early on by fans of his former side, Zouma was called into action plenty in the first half, making six clearances and another two after the break before hobbling off injured.
Issa Diop 6 – Looked comfortable with West Ham’s change of formation alongside Dawson and Zouma, in a move which David Moyes predicted would aid his side’s chances of taking at least a point against Chelsea.
Ben Johnson 6 – Chelsea predominantly targeted West Ham’s left, and Johnson endured a difficult 45 minutes before going off injured late in the first half.
Declan Rice 8 – An early interception, an early headed clearance. This is what we’ve come to expect from Rice, who put in another tireless display throughout for West Ham – while Chelsea supporters were urging their former academy star into making a “big move” across London with a chant that came just moments before West Ham’s second goal.
Tomas Soucek 7 – Compared to Rice it started off as a quiet match for Soucek, but he became just as busy as his midfield partner in the second half as West Ham secured a valuable win.
Vladimir Coufal 7 – Recorded an assist for Bowen’s goal and went close himself. Appeared to benefit from this 3-4-2-1 formation, which gave him extra license to go forward.
Manuel Lanzini 7 – Kept his cool from the spot despite a quiet game until then.
Michail Antonio 7 – Struggled to get into the game at times, but that was largely down to Chelsea’s dominance in possession. A couple of first-half shots off target, and after the break he almost setup Bowen for their third goal when easily brushing off Callum Hudson-Odoi before sending a cross in.
Jarrod Bowen 8 – Rewarded for chasing down Mendy and winning West Ham a first-half penalty, and despite limited chances, he then scored a superb equaliser in the second half. Bowen was then inches away from scoring in the 75th minute when stretching to meet Antonio’s cross.
Subs: Arthur Masuaku 7 – Came on just before half-time for Johnson, and had his moment to remember in the 87th minute when his deflected cross beat Mendy.
Pablo Fornals 6 – Replaced the injury Zouma. Played his part in a fine team move that almost saw Bowen score his second.
Said Benrahma N/A – A late sub for Lanzini.
— Premier League (@premierleague) December 4, 2021
@WestHam are the first side to score more than one goal against Chelsea in a #PL game this season #WHUCHE pic.twitter.com/zF0FivJNgd
Chelsea : Edouard Mendy 4 – Sold a tad short by Jorginho’s backpass, Mendy did not help himself when trying to shield the ball, and he ultimately ended up fouling Bowen to help West Ham get back into the match. Lanzini’s penalty was perfect, and the next time the ball came back to Mendy, he kicked it out for a West Ham throw-in, evidently shaken from what had happened minutes prior. A poor display got worse when Mendy could only parry Masuaku’s deflected cross into his own goal.
Andreas Christensen 6 – Largely tasked with man-marking Antonio, he kept West Ham’s No 9 relatively quiet throughout, but not enough to prevent a defeat.
Thiago Silva 7 – Some couple of minutes for the Brazilian centre-back. Moments after heading Chelsea in front from a corner, down the other end his goalline clearance denied Coufal after Mendy was well beaten. However, this contribution was not enough to help Chelsea hold on.
Antonio Rudiger 6 – Decent display to Silva’s left, but had few moments of note.
Reece James 7 – Pretty much Chelsea’s go-to man when attacking, James was a continuous threat down the right and put in a number of dangerous crosses. Defensively he did well to track Rice and prevent a West Ham counter after the break.
Jorginho 5 – A typically busy afternoon for Jorginho in the middle of the park, although he will want to forget his role in the opening goal.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek 5 – Another start for Loftus-Cheek having done so against Watford as well. Hardly put a foot wrong defensively, but at times sloppy in attack.
Marcos Alonso 5 – Chelsea’s preference for attacking down the right meant Alonso had few moments of note before coming off for Christian Pulisic.
Mason Mount 7 – One goal, one assist for Mount, who took delight from celebrating his fine volley in front of West Ham’s supporters. Was disappointed, however, when at 2-2 his effort was directed straight at Fabianski.
Kai Havertz 5 – Had two first-half chances but felt the effects of a last-ditch challenge from Zouma, going off at half-time.
Hakim Ziyech 5 – Had Chelsea’s first half-chance but couldn’t quite latch onto James’ deflected cross. Had a chance to immediately restore Chelsea’s lead, and flashed another effort over the bar in the second half.
Subs: Romelu Lukaku 6 – Replaced Havertz for the second half, but was starved of chances.
Callum Hudson-Odoi 5 – Came on for Ziyech in 64th minute. Easily brushed off by Antonio when West Ham’s No 9 created a chance for Bowen – not good enough.
Christian Pulisic 6 – Replaced Alonso, and had just the one chance late on.
Analysis: Mendy at fault, West Ham bounce back in style
A match where West Ham and Moyes deserve every bit of praise for twice pegging back Chelsea before scoring a late winner.
However, it is difficult to look past the fact Chelsea threw this one away. They dominated possession – 64-36 per cent – and had 19 shots to West Ham’s 11.
Lapses in concentration proved to be their downfall, and having looked underwhelming in their 2-1 win at Watford, they were punished on Saturday afternoon.
Mendy in particular will want to forget this game in a hurry, but West Ham fans won’t – after losing to Wolves and Manchester City then drawing with Brighton, their top-four bid is back on track.
Manager reaction to follow.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3IhUN0N
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