Daily WHUFC News - 10th December 2017

Magnificent Hammers shut out Chelsea for derby win
WHUFC.com

West Ham United 1 – 0 Chelsea
Premier League

West Ham United gave David Moyes their first victory as manager with a magnificent defensive effort against Chelsea on Saturday. Marko Arnautovic's early goal was enough to see off the Premier League champions and end a two-month wait for victory in the Premier League. The Hammers had to repel an enormous amount of Chelsea possession, but did a fine job of restricting their visitors largely to efforts from range. After a testing period for the Hammers, it was just the tonic they needed following on from a similarly resolute performance at Manchester City last week, and sets them up for the busy festive period on a stronger footing.
Moyes has a big call to make in goal following Adrian's fine performance at Manchester City last week and he opted to retain the No13 in his starting XI, alongside bringing Winston Reid, Mark Noble and Arnautovic back. It was the latter who had an immediate impact, firing the hosts into the lead with just six minutes on the clock. It was a lovely goal too, as the Austrian exchanged passes with Manuel Lanzini before dropping a shoulder to see off Cesar Azpilicueta and shoot into the corner. The Hammers led at the league leaders a week ago and then held the advantage again here, giving them something to hold onto as Chelsea searched for a foothold in the contest. They certainly gained it in terms of possession – going into the break with 66 per cent of the ball – but West Ham were doing a sturdy job of defending against it.
Chelsea's threat was largely coming from shots from outside the box, and Adrian had to be alert to touch a N'Golo Kante curler around the pitch on 28 minutes.
The danger wasn't over, and from the resulting corner Davide Zappacosta's low drive needed another smart stop from the Hammers keeper. West Ham's problem in the opening 35 minutes was that they were not winning enough of the second balls in midfield, but they improved in that aspect in the closing stages of the opening period and began to pose questions again. Arthur Masuaku looked to use his dribbling skills to good effect in attacking areas and he ghosted past his man before dragging a shot wide from outside the area.

West Ham had penalty shouts early in the second period when Arnautovic ran at Andreas Christiansen and the ball skipped up onto his arm, but referee Anthony Taylor waved play on. The visitors wasted no time in using their attacking options, bringing all of Pedro, Willian and former Hammers loanee Victor Moses on inside the first 19 minutes of the second period, and the Hammers were being pushed deeper and deeper. Like the first half, though, Chelsea were having difficulty in cutting through the Hammers though, with Zappacosta's flashed shot across goal on 58 typical of their threat. As the Hammers tired, the Blues' sights of goal got slightly clearer, and Alvaro Morata cracked a shot just wide of the mark after Masuaku couldn't get up in time and played the Spaniard onside. It was a clear opportunity – the clearest the visitors had – but they didn't take it as the Hammers held on for the points.

West Ham United: Adrian, Zabaleta, Reid, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Noble (c), Obiang, Arnautovic (Sakho 69), Lanzini, Masuaku, Antonio (Ayew 78)
Subs: Hart, Rice, Fernandes, Carroll, Chicharito
Goal: Arnautovic 6
Booked: Arnautovic, Adrian, Reid, Cresswell, Obiang, Masuaku

Chelsea: Courtois, Azpilicueta, Christiansen, Cahill (c), Zappacosta (Willian 64), Kante, Bakayoko (Pedro 46), Alonso (Moses 55), Fabregas, Hazard, Morata
Subs: Caballero, Rudiger, Ampadu, Batshuay
Booked: Alonso
Referee: Anthony Taylor
Attendance: 56,953

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Moyes hails 'fantastic spirit and effort'
WHUFC.com

David Moyes praised his team's spirit and effort after his West Ham United side battled hard at London Stadium to claim a 1-0 victory over London rivals Chelsea. The Hammers were forced to defend for large parts of the game after Marko Arnautovic had given them the lead in the sixth-minute of the Premier League derby. However, Moyes' men limited the Blues to just a couple of meaningful chances and the hosts could have stretched their lead even further on the break in the second half on a number of occasions.
On the back of last week's battling performance which eventually yielded no points at Manchester City, the boss was delighted as this time, the east Londoners were able to hold onto their first half lead. He said: "What a great result it is for us. We needed to find a result and we've done that. We came close against Manchester City and for long periods, we thought we were going to get it. "But today, the spirit of the team, how we stuck together and our effort was fantastic. The basics were done very well today. "Don't get me wrong, it was really tough today, Chelsea kept us under pressure. But we played well, we scored a good goal in the first half and if we'd been better with the ball in the second half we'd have got another goal."

With Michail Antonio leading the line and Arnautovic and Manuel Lanzini in just behind the 27-year-old, the Hammers packed the midfield and prevented last year's Premier League champions from causing too much danger in and around the penalty area. And a back five, consisting of wing-backs Pablo Zabaleta and Arthur Masuaku and Winston Reid, Angelo Ogbonna and Aaron Cresswell playing more centrally, stood strong and cleared everything that came their way.
Along with goalkeeper Adrian who kept his place after last week's Man of the Match performance at the Etihad Stadium, the manager was thrilled with his defence who helped keep a first clean sheet in eleven games. "We are having to try and stop conceding goals," he continued. "I think we have people who can score and cause problems, but we need to stop conceding goals. "We did better last week with that, we didn't get a result but we were better and again we were better today. "I have two really good goalkeepers. Joe's professional when I told him he wasn't playing, and Adrian played very well last week. We have kept a clean sheet today, so at the moment Adrian's done well and played well again today."
As ever, the West Ham supporters stuck behind their team and were a huge influence in the second half as the eleven on the pitch put in a backs-to-the-wall display, and Moyes admitted they played a big part. "For anybody to say there is not a good atmosphere here, they're wrong. They'd have to be here today to see the great atmosphere inside the stadium. The supporters knew the game was on the edge. "We were fighting to not concede and the crowd were great and they played a big part. "They appreciated the effort the players are putting in, and if they're putting that effort in, then supporters will cheer them. Ultimately, we want to play our football better, but it can only be one step at a time. "We need our season to turn now. We've beaten the champions today, it's a great achievement for us and a great three points."

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Arnautovic: When the team and fans combine, we can be unbeatable
WHUFC.com

When Marko Arnautovic scored West Ham United's Premier League match-winner against Chelsea at London Stadium, his first reaction was to head for the East Stand Lower to celebrate with the Claret and Blue Army. The Austrian celebrated his first goal for the Club on Saturday by racing to the touchline, hurdling the advertising hoarding and burying himself in a mass of happy Hammers. It was a gesture not just of joy, but of thanks to the supporters who have stuck by the team through a difficult start to the season and were rewarded with a valuable victory over their London rivals on Saturday. "I can do everything better, but I'm improving now and I'm enjoying playing football," said the No7, who steered the ball past Thibaut Courtois at the end of a superb move involving Pablo Zabaleta, Michail Antonio and Manuel Lanzini. "I'm feeling fit and I trained hard and try to get the best out of myself and then, when I take that into the game and it works out, I feel good. "It felt great for our fans because they deserve it and for us, as a team, it's amazing to get a win. For myself, I scored and we beat them, so it's an amazing feeling that I cannot describe. I don't want this to be my last goal. I want it to be the first one of many. "I just wanted to celebrate with them and I want to give back to them because, when the fans get behind us and cheer us for 90 minutes, they are unbeatable, I think. Nobody can beat them. When they are behind us and we are on the front foot, nobody can beat us as well. "We're going to enjoy this today, but when we wake up we're going to concentrate on Arsenal, because we have three important games this week, not just one."
Arnautovic and his teammates matched Premier League champions Chelsea stride for stride on Saturday, with the Austrian himself covering nearly 9km in just 69 minutes on the pitch. The 29-year-old said the Hammers' improving physical output statistics were down to the intense work the players were putting in under new manager David Moyes and his staff. The squad will rest and recover on Sunday before returning to the training pitch on Monday morning ahead of the midweek visit of Arsenal. "Every day, we need to work hard under this coach and there are no excuses. Everybody needs to do his main job and do two or three more jobs on the pitch. We are working hard as a team and I think you could see this in the game and if we continue to do that, we will be hard to beat.
"We need to keep up the level. Now is a busy month and we're going to have a game every three days so it's going to be hard, so we need to recover well and go again on Wednesday. "I'm really tired, I'm going to go to sleep tonight and then tomorrow I'm going to work hard to make sure I'm ready for Wednesday!"

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Chicharito is at his best playing as a centre forward - Moyes
WHUFC.com

David Moyes says Chicharito's best position is centre forward and he is working out a system to best utilise the Mexico international's goal poaching talents.
The 29-year-old has netted at a prolific rate for Guadalajara, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen and his national side throughout his career.
However, Moyes admits he needs to find a way of getting the best out of Chicharito in a West Ham United shirt. "Going back to when I started, I think the squad was a group of players where we had a lot of centre forwards, a lot of left wingers," he explained. "If you going to play three at the back you can't really fit in wide players and wingers and if you are going to play 4-3-3 you can only play one striker, so I feel as if there was a group of players who were made for a couple of systems. "So it has not always been that easy to just do that one job, and you are trying to get your best players in the team, so I can understand why Chicharito has had to play in certain roles because there are other centre forwards like Andy Carroll and Andre Ayew here. "We have got to try and find a way of getting the best balance. We are still working towards getting to that."

When asked if the No17, who returns to the squad for Saturday's Premier League derby with Chelsea after a month out with a hamstring injury, is at his most potent when playing as a centre forward, Moyes was in no doubt. "I do think that is his best position," he confirmed. "My memories of him are his finishing and his nearly being on the last shoulder."What he needs then is lots of balls in the box and a team that is going to give him that service."

Carroll is also back in the squad after overcoming his own injury problems, albeit a less serious issue than Chicharito.However, it sounds like both may begin Saturday's lunchtime kick-off on the substitutes' bench."Andy started training yesterday so probably in better condition than the likes of Chicharito, who is not long back."He has only been out a week or two, while Chicharito has not played for three or four weeks. So I think with match fitness Andy is a little bit closer. But both are not quite ready yet."

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West Ham Ladies part company with manager
WHUFC.com

West Ham United Ladies have parted company with manager Greg De Carnys. General manager Karen Ray will take temporary charge of first team duties while the Hammers finalise the appointment of a new manager.West Ham United would like to place on record its sincere gratitude to Greg for everything he achieved over his short but significant tenure at the helm.

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Lanzini: Manager got the tactics spot on against Chelsea
WHUFc.com

Manuel Lanzini says David Moyes' tactical approach was spot on as the Hammers stifled Premier League champions Chelsea to claim a 1-0 win over the Blues on Saturday. West Ham United were magnificent in defence against their visitors, soaking up Chelsea's 69 per cent of possession to only allow them two shots on target in the match, and none in the second half. At the other end Lanzini laid on Marko Arnautovic's sixth-minute winner - the goal giving the Hammers a platform from which to repel Chelsea's attacking threat. He said: "We really needed the win, especially given our situation in the table. We knew that it was going to be an extremely hard match but we had the right system, like we did against City, where we could also have got a point, but this time luckily everything clicked. "We played great in defence and we converted the chance we had, which was really important and we played a great match. "Obviously we know the situation we're in, and we need to win. It's essential to us. Every match is a final from now on and we need to play every match like today. "We won against one of the best teams in the league and we hope we can play like that for the rest of the season."

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West Ham United 1-0 Chelsea
By Jack Skelton
BBC Sport


West Ham won for the first time under David Moyes as Marko Arnautovic's first goal for the club proved enough to beat a disjointed Chelsea at London Stadium. The Hammers scored the only goal after just six minutes when Arnautovic curled a deft strike into the bottom corner after exchanging passes with Manuel Lanzini on the edge of the area. Chelsea responded well before the break but were repelled by an organised West Ham defence and two solid saves from Adrian, retaining his spot in place of the dropped Joe Hart. Both sides became increasingly ragged in the second half but West Ham desperately held on, with Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata firing wide when clean through late on.
Despite victory, the hosts remain in the bottom three, though they have drawn level on points with 17th-placed West Brom, who lost 1-0 to fellow strugglers Swansea later on Saturday. Defeat means champions Chelsea will finish the weekend 14 points behind leaders Manchester City if Pep Guardiola's side beat rivals Manchester United on Sunday.
Having ultimately failed to hang on in a vastly improved performance against Manchester City last weekend, West Ham took the next step in proving they could be revitalised under Moyes by this time beating superior opposition. Their new endeavour was epitomised by Arnautovic, the often frustrating Austria international exchanging positions with his fellow forwards to routinely test Chelsea's defence. When makeshift centre-forward Michail Antonio drifted out right early on, Arnautovic cleverly moved inside, collecting Antonio's pass and playing a quick one-two with Lanzini to leave Andreas Christensen behind, before calmly finishing low past Thibaut Courtois. He remained a threat even when West Ham dropped deeper and was denied a decent penalty shout when he tried to go past Christensen and the ball hit the Danish defender's outstretched hand.
At the other end, the Hammers showed greater resolve in defence, largely due to Moyes' organisation of the central back three and wing-backs, with Arthur Masuaku particularly impressive down the left. It could also be a result of Adrian's more measured presence in goal, exuding more calm to his defence perhaps than the erratic Hart, who could not play against his parent club last week and has now lost his place. "I have two really good goalkeepers - Joe's professionalism when I told him he wasn't playing was excellent, Adrian has done well again and kept the clean sheet so we're happy," said Moyes.

Whatever the main reason, Moyes will surely stick with Adrian going forward and England's number one Hart could find himself short of first-team football before next summer's World Cup.The next test for West Ham is to replicate these performances against the teams around them and drag themselves away from danger.

Man of the match - Marko Arnautovic (West Ham)

The mercurial Marko Arnautovic had his best game since joining West Ham in the summer, scoring his first goal for the club and testing Chelsea's defence throughout

Is Chelsea's title defence over?

Even before the halfway mark in the season, it already looks like a second successive Premier League title is beyond Chelsea, who trail the imperious Manchester City by 11 points with the leaders still to play this weekend. Antonio Conte's side have now dropped 16 points in as many games, having dropped just 21 in the whole of last season. As with defeats by Burnley and Crystal Palace, they were poor against less-gifted opposition and the Blues attack was largely innocuous throughout.
Adrian made two fine saves low to his left to keep out N'Golo Kante and David Zappacosta, but both efforts were somewhat speculative and Eden Hazard displayed none of his recent stellar form as he was unable to exploit West Ham's deep line. It took a momentary lapse in concentration by Masuaku to create Chelsea's best chance, as the wing-back played Morata onside only for the Spain striker to pull his shot wide, before Hazard struck over in the closing stages.
Nothing Chelsea did was particularly bad, but neither was it that inspiring - a microcosm of a uneven season in which they look set to be left fighting for second at best.

'The fans know West Ham are on the way back' - manager reaction

West Ham manager David Moyes, speaking to BBC Sport: "We're having to stop conceding goals - we have a terrible goals against record - but we've also got people here who can score and cause problems and we've done much better again "The supporters showed they know West Ham are on their way back and they're showing that the players are putting in the effort."I'd love to play the way Chelsea play but we can only do so much at a time. We've beaten the champions so it's a great achievement for us and a great three points."

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte, speaking to BBC Sport: "When you lose a game you must be disappointed. Our start was bad but we played a bit tired. To face one game every two days always with the same players is very difficult. And we have just started this period. "We created many chances but were not able to score. We have to go and to play game by game, to be focused. Don't forget in this league it is very difficult. There are six top teams and four go to the Champions League. We have to fight and do our best."

Five of Conte's nine Premier League defeats as Chelsea manager have been in London derbies (Crystal Palace twice, Arsenal, Tottenham and West Ham).
Moyes secured his first Premier League home victory in just under a year since Sunderland beat Watford on 17 December 2016, ending a run of 11 successive league home games without a win (D5 L6).
Arnautovic became the 140th different player to score a Premier League goal for West Ham - only Tottenham (142) have had a higher number of players score for them in the competition.
Arnautovic became the 43rd different player to both score for and against West Ham United in the Premier League - a higher tally than any other club in the competition.
Courtois has conceded 100 goals in the Premier League for Chelsea in 107 appearances in the competition. It took Petr Cech 172 Premier League appearances to concede 100 goals for the Blues.
This was the 100th Premier League win that Mark Noble has played in for the Hammers - the first player to reach this landmark for the club.

What's next?

Chelsea travel to Huddersfield on Tuesday, with kick-off at 20:00 GMT, before hosting Southampton on 16 December at 15:00.

West Ham host Arsenal on Wednesday at 20:00 and are away to Stoke next Saturday at 15:00.

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WEST HAM 1-0 CHELSEA – MATCH REPORT
AUTHOR: BRIAN KNOX. PUBLISHED: 9 DECEMBER 2017 AT 4:00PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Match Report by @WestHamAmerican

Christmas came early for West Ham's downtrodden supporters today as the Hammers took three points from the defending league champions in a 1-0 London derby against Chelsea at the London Stadium. The lone goal, from Marko Arnautovic, happened early on and was the West Ham record signing's first goal in claret. The remaining 85 minutes of play were nerve racking for a near capacity crowd almost conditioned to watch their club surrender goals late in the match. But on this cold East London day, a mixture of smart defending and crisp ball movement gave the hosts their first league victory since September.

The goal came in the 7th minute when Manuel Lanzini found Arnautovic at short range. The Austrian was able to fight off two defenders to get a shot across the goal, well away from Courtois' reach. With the early goal, the London Stadium established a more festive atmosphere.

Adrian, making a second start after his solid showing against Manchester City, had an active afternoon, blocking early shots from Kante and Zappacosta. The entire back line for West Ham put in a great 90 minutes both preserving the clean sheet and also not giving up the foolish penalties in the box, which had doomed them in previous outings.

Once again, Moyes began with Michael Antonio in the forward position. While Antonio had his opportunities, by the second half he was truly "out of steam" and Andre Ayew was brought on. Ayew actually suffered what appeared to be a hamstring injury only minutes after he entered the match. His pace was definitely affected; however he did finish out the match.

By the final 15 minutes of play, West Ham devolved into a purely defensive squad. All eleven players were behind the ball and no real attacking threat on their minds other than a few Diafra Sakho counter attacks that were short lived.

Despite the five added minutes and a swath of bookings (six West Ham players found their way to Anthony Taylor's book, and Stuart Pierce was almost ejected for launching the ball into the stands as it rolled through the technical area) but the hosts were able to find that elusive win versus a top six club in the London Stadium.

Hopefully this momentum will carry forward as West Ham will see Arsenal on Wednesday and finish the week with a visit to Stoke. The Gunners have been on a good run as of late both in the Premier League and the Europa League, and will still come to East London as the favourites. West Ham sit one point from safety. If the Hammers can play the next two like the last two, then 2018 could be a much less depressing year than West Ham's supporters had feared.

West Ham: Adrian, Zabaleta, Reid, Ogbonna, Cresswell, Noble, Obiang, Masuaku, Lanzini, Arnautovic, Antonio.
Subs: Hart, Rice, Fernandes, Carroll, Sakho (69'), Herandez, Ayew (79')

Chelsea: Courtois, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Christensen, Zappacosta, Kante, Fabregas, Bakayoko, Alonso, Hazard, Morata.
Subs: Caballero, Rudiger, Ampadu, Moses (55'), Willian (64'), Pedro (45'), Batshuayi
Referee: Anthony Taylor

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West Ham 1-0 Chelsea: Marko Arnautovic seals first win of David Moyes tenure
By Jack Wilkinson
Last Updated: 09/12/17 6:43pm
SSn

Antonio Conte's dismal London derby form continued as West Ham beat Chelsea 1-0 to hand David Moyes his first victory as Hammers boss. Moyes' landmark victory was sealed by Marko Arnautovic, who fired his first goal for the club with just six minutes on the clock at the London Stadium. Alvaro Morata and Eden Hazard spurned chances to rescue a point but the hosts clung on as Conte suffered his ninth league defeat at Chelsea - five of which have now come at the hands of London rivals. West Ham remain in the relegation zone but a first win in nine gives them a timely boost ahead of the busy festive period. Just as they did in last week's encouraging defeat at Manchester City, West Ham took the lead as Arnautovic played a one-two with Manuel Lanzini and slotted his first Hammers goal beyond Thibaut Courtois on six minutes.

Player ratings
West Ham: Adrian (8), Zabaleta (7), Reid (8), Ogbonna (7), Cresswell (7), Lanzini (8), Noble (7), Obiang (7), Masuaku (8), Arnautovic (8), Antonio (8).
Subs: Sakho (5), Ayew (5).

Chelsea: Courtois (6), Azpilicueta (6), Cahill (5), Christensen (5), Zappacosta (5), Kante (6), Fabregas (5), Bakayoko (5), Alonso (5), Hazard (5), Morata (5).
Subs: Moses (5), Willian (5), Pedro (5).

Man of the Match: Marko Arnautovic.

Chelsea went on to dominate possession but had to wait until 29 minutes to register their first substantial attempts on goal as N'Golo Kante and Davide Zappacosta drew saves in quick succession from Adrian. Conte wasted no time in changing his misfiring attack as Pedro, Victor Moses and Willian came on within 19 minutes of the restart. But it was West Ham came close to finding the net as Arnautovic and the relentless Michail Antonio posed the greater threat on the counter. A fatigued Hammers side dropped deeper and deeper as the game wore on, inviting pressure as Chelsea pushed for an equaliser.

Team news

David Moyes made four changes, bringing in goalkeeper Adrian, Winston Reid, Mark Noble and Marko Arnautovic. Antonio Conte, meanwhile, made three as Gary Cahill, Davide Zappacosta and Tiemoue Bakayoko returned. But, having been played in by Kante, Morata fired a glorious chance wide on 84 minutes before Hazard shot over a minute later as the Blues failed to keep pace with the two Manchester clubs.

Opta stats

Chelsea have already dropped 16 points in their 16 Premier League games this season - they only dropped 21 in the whole of 2016/17 season.
This was David Moyes' first Premier League home victory as a manager in just under a year (December 17, 2016; Sunderland 1-0 Watford) and ended a run of 11 successive league home games without a win (W0 D5 L6).
Five of Antonio Conte’s nine Premier League defeats at Chelsea have been in London derbies (Crystal Palace x2, Arsenal, Tottenham & West Ham)
Five of Antonio Conte's nine Premier League defeats at Chelsea have been in London derbies (Crystal Palace x2, Arsenal, Tottenham & West Ham)
Marko Arnautovic became the 140th different player to score a Premier League goal (excl. own goals) for West Ham; only Spurs (142) have seen a higher number of players score for them in the competition.
Arnautovic also became the 43rd different player to both score for and against West Ham in the Premier League; a higher tally than any other club in the competition.
This was the 100th Premier League win that Mark Noble has played in for West Ham; the first player to reach this landmark for the club.

The managers

David Moyes: "The win was the biggest thing. To get a win in the Premier League is really hard especially against the champions. After that, I would say the spirit of the team, how they stuck together, their work-rate and their effort pleased me. The basics were, in the main, done well today."

Antonio Conte: "This is the fourth defeat in 16 games. In my previous experience, when you lose four games in a season, it's impossible to stay and fight for the title. "In 16 games and to lose four, it means that a target must be another. If you want to stay in the race for the title in the first part of the season you can only lose once or twice."

The Pundit

Jamie Redknapp: "They [West Ham] should be playing like this week in, week out. When you have a bench with people like Andy Carroll, Javier Hernandez and Diafra Sakho, it is a bench that teams at the bottom of the league would love to have. "Now they have to adhere to this every week because some of the performances haven't been good enough. To be on 10 points before today with that group of players and performing like that against Chelsea, they have to do this week in, week out."

Man of the Match - Marko Arnautovic

Arnautovic looks unrecognisable compared to the player that was operating under former boss Slaven Bilic earlier this season, and showed his class as his superb maiden goal for the club clinched victory against the champions.

What's next?

It's a second London derby on the spin for West Ham as they host Arsenal at the London Stadium on Wednesday. Before that, Chelsea travel north to take on Huddersfield on Tuesday.

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West Ham look harder to beat after Chelsea win, says David Moyes
Last Updated: 09/12/17 5:39pm
SSN

David Moyes says West Ham are starting to looking harder to beat after their 1-0 win against Chelsea, whose style of football he praised after the game.
The former Everton and Manchester United manager picked up his first victory since replacing Slaven Bilic just over a month ago, with Marko Arnautovic's sixth-minute strike sealing a vital three points for the Hammers. It comes a week after they made life difficult for the Premier League leaders Manchester City, and Moyes says his side are improving, targeting the style of Chelsea as a benchmark for his West Ham team. "We look harder to beat at the moment, which has been a big problem here. We have people who can create and score goals so if we can get the back end sorted we might give ourselves a chance of earning some points," he told Sky Sports. "The win was the biggest thing. To get a win in the Premier League is really hard especially against the champions. After that, I would say the spirit of the team, how they stuck together, their work-rate and their effort pleased me. The basics were, in the main, done well today. "We wanted to try and cause Chelsea some problems as well. We knew once they got a grip of the ball, their possession would be far greater than ours so that also meant us being good defensively, being organised and I thought we were for long periods. "I'd like to play my football like Chelsea played today, I thought some of their football at times was stunning. I hope in time that my team here at West Ham will play in a good fashion like they did."

Arnautovic has come in for criticism since his summer move to West Ham but has been showing signs of improvement in recent weeks, and rounded off a fine performance on Saturday with his first goal for the club. "I think Marko has been a good player. West Ham signed him with the idea that he can help by creating goals and scoring goals and he did that today," Moyes added. "I think he is starting to contribute in the couple of games I've had with him. I thought Marko and also Antonio up front were always a handful."

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West Ham 1-0 Chelsea: Talking points from Hammers' surprise win
Last Updated: 09/12/17 3:40pm
SSN

Marko Arnautovic was the match-winner for a determined West Ham who pulled off a surprise victory over Chelsea at the London Stadium. The forward found the net after just seven minutes and the home side then held the defending Premier League champions at bay for the remainder of the contest.

West Ham step up

From front to back, West Ham were excellent against Chelsea. From Arnautovic's clinical finish early on, to the entire team's determined defence and the relentless running from Michail Antonio, David Moyes' men gave him everything he would have demanded against their London rivals. Jose Fonte, the injured West Ham defender, praised his teammates' intensity from the first whistle from the Sky Sports studio, and their early aggression set the tone for the afternoon. There were nine blocked Chelsea shots in all, as West Ham reproduced the resolve they showed against the waves of Manchester City attacks last weekend.

Moyes v champions

David Moyes has won five of his last six Premier League home games against the reigning champions. He was won all four matches against Italian managers in charge of the reigning champions (Carlo Ancelotti, Roberto Mancini, Claudio Ranieri and Antonio Conte). Winston Reid produced 10 clearances, Angelo Ogbonna came up with six interceptions. They were game-high numbers from two standout defensive performances. But the Hammers defended fantastically as a team. It wasn't all backs to the wall - West Ham fans rolled out the 'oles' during first-half stoppage time as Manuel Lanzini and Arthur Masuaku teased the Chelsea players with tricks and flicks on the touchline - but the home side's second-half stand against near relentless pressure will have fuelled Moyes' hope this side can fight their way to survival.

Chelsea blow chance to close on Manchester clubs

If Chelsea fail to retain their Premier League title, it will be days like these they look back on ruefully. Coming into the game on a fine run of league form, they knew victory would have allowed them to close the gap on one, if not both, of the Manchester clubs, given United and City's derby on Sunday. They squandered that chance. There was a penalty appeal which could have gone their way and a bad miss from Alvaro Morata late on when he should have hit the net when unmarked 10 yards out, but no shots on target in the second-half (despite 10 efforts at goal) summed up the lack of cutting edge Chelsea showed at the London Stadium.

Chelsea remaining December fixtures
Huddersfield (a), Southampton (h), Everton (a), Brighton (h), Stoke (h).

A Sky Sports study at the start of the month revealed Chelsea had the easiest December fixtures on paper. After this unexpected slip-up they cannot afford to make any more mistakes. The problem for Antonio Conte and his players is that they may now have already left themselves too much ground to make up.

Penalty for Morata?

Perhaps this game would have panned out differently had Chelsea been awarded a penalty on 15 minutes. At 1-0 down, they can count themselves a little unfortunate not to have been thrown an immediate way back into the match by referee Anthony Taylor. As Morata battled Reid in the box, the New Zealand international grabbed the Chelsea striker's shirt at the shoulder - but the Spaniard's theatrical fall didn't convince Taylor, whose position obscured his view of the tangle. "I think they could [have had a penalty]," said Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp. "Reid definitely gets a bit of his shirt, he grabs it, he pulls it… the problem is the ref can't see it."

Arnautovic stars

It had been an underwhelming start to life at West Ham for the club's record signing Arnautovic since his £20m switch from Stoke in the summer. Booed off against Brighton and questioned for his teamwork by boss Moyes, the Austrian had struggled to recreate the quality he showed last season. However, he made his mark here, opening his West Ham account with a fine goal just seven minutes in, and then producing a battling performance which set the tone for his teammates. A one-two on the edge of the box with Lanzini created space and a cool, left-foot shot into the far corner left Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois no chance as West Ham made the breakthrough early on. It was the first time Arnautovic had hit the net since April and his jubilant celebrations, which saw him jump into the crowd, earned him a yellow card. But that booking was the only blot on his copy book on Saturday afternoon. He bullied Andreas Christensen throughout, winning the ball off the Dane in the first-half and then having a driving run into the area stopped by the hand of the Chelsea defender, which was considered unintentional by referee Taylor. Christensen will have been pleased to see the back of him when he was subbed off on 68 minutes, but it wasn't just his attacking contributions which stood out. The 28-year-old weighed in defensively too, regularly dropping back into West Ham's third to help out his colleagues. It was an all-round performance Moyes will expect - and need - more of.

What now for Hart?

While West Ham celebrated an unlikely win, Joe Hart may well have left the London Stadium wondering what his future holds. Moyes gave the goalkeeper his backing on Friday, insisting he wouldn't be cancelling the player's loan deal this January. However, he stuck with Adrian for this clash with Chelsea, after the Spaniard impressed at Manchester City last time out, and Hart's replacement didn't put a foot wrong. It was a damaging call for Hart, who had shipped 16 goals in his previous six league games. While England boss Gareth Southgate has also given his backing to the shot-stopper, there's no doubt sitting on West Ham's bench will do little to boost Hart's prospects of being his country's number one at the World Cup next summer

Hart's England place under threat
Jamie Redknapp says Joe Hart's England place is under serious threat if he can't force his way back into West Ham's starting 11. The 30-year-old has a battle on his hands to dislodge Adrian now, though. His replacement was handed a couple of physical blows from Marcos Alonso and Morata but dealt with Chelsea's barrage of crosses into his box and saved well from N'Golo Kante and Davide Zappacosta in the first-half.

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TEN TALKING POINTS FROM WEST HAM 1 CHELSEA 0
By Iain Dale 9 Dec 2017 at 14:24
WTID

So proud. It's the first time for ages, and going back to last season, that we have put in a performance that lasted ninety minutes. Credit to every player. They were a team, not just a team of individuals. Let's crack on from this!

1. Cracking Man of the Match performance from Arthur Masuaku.
2. Arnautovic finally broke his duck and played superbly.
3. Brilliant, rocking atmosphere for the second Chelsea home game in a row!
4. Excellent midfield performance in the first half especially.
5. Excellent defensive performance throughout the game with the back three looking solid throughout.
6. Great return for Winston Reid.
7. Andre Ayew put in a real defensive shift when he came on to replace the tired out Antonio.
8. David Moyes set the team up perfectly to frustrate Chelsea. Credit to him.
9. Adrian did everything that was asked of him and must now retain his place for Arsenal on Wednesday.
10. Let's hope this sets up the rest of our season and isn't a flash in the pan.

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WEST HAM 1, CHELSEA 0. MUCH, MUCH BETTER.
By David Hautzig 9 Dec 2017 at 18:00
WTID

I was non stop yesterday. Two school concerts, one in the afternoon and then one in the evening. Work and other life requirements were squeezed in between those two lovely events, so I was easily able to keep my promise from last week not to let West Ham take up unnecessary space in my brain. So I was blissfully unaware of Jacob Steinberg's interview with David Sullivan in The Guardian until this morning. I was amazed, almost awed, by the abject stupidity I read. To start, admitting you had said things and made promises you should not have made in the very forum you should avoid for the rest of your life was irony personified. But the bit that left my mouth open almost long enough to dribble like an infant was his bragging about always coming straight back up when relegated. Uhhhhh, sir. Were you so out of touch with reality that you didn't realize you were bragging about your many failures as football owners? Having to constantly fix repeated screw ups is not a measure of success. It's a measure of neurological malfunctions. I'm guessing Steinberg used a lot of energy not to throw up on his laptop.

If there has been one positive about the Moyes reign thus far it has been the running. There has been a lot more of it. More pressing, more questions of the opposition. That was on display from the opening kick, but unlike recent matches there was an end product to go with it. In the sixth minute, Antonio and Lanzini combined near the top of the Chelsea eighteen yard box. Arnautovic broke into the center of the box and Lanzini rolled a pass perfectly into his path. The Austrian cut to his left and curled a shot around Courtois. I won't lie, but my joy at the goal was tempered by the yellow shown for his Tevez like celebration. He's not what we would call a level headed dude, know what I mean? What he has been is a changed player since Moyes arrival. Why? Don't know, don't care.

West Ham 1
Chelsea 0

The goal did not lead to West Ham complacency. The home side kept the pressure on, but that pressure did not lead to another attempt on goal. The next goal scoring opportunity fell, quite literally, to Hazard in the 20th minute when a high deflection fell to him ten yards in front of Adrian. He tried to volley it but didn't quite connect and his shot went wide. Chelsea dominated possession and tested Adrian in the 28th minute when Kante sent a hard low shot that Adrian had to dive to his left to push out for a corner. It continued to be all Chelsea, but West Ham showed impressive resilience and shape and kept the Blue wave at bay. But if you wondered how long they could keep that up, I doubt you were in the minority. West Ham dropped deeper and deeper, and that sense of inevitability grew.

West Ham won three corners in the final minutes of the half, and Masuaku played a direct part in two of them. It might not be a stretch to say it was the best 45 minutes of his West Ham career. Conversely, and I know I will be accused of bias here, Noble felt like the weakest link. More than a few bad passes that led directly to Chelsea counters, and generally looked a half step behind everyone else. Hey. I'm 52. Doing laundry takes energy now. Age happens

Halftime
West Ham 1
Chelsea 0

Chelsea began the second half with one change that anyone with a computer welcomed. Pedro on for Bakayoko, the latter of which was a typo waiting to happen. I would have liked to see one change in the midfield for West Ham, but I won't belabor the point.

In the 50th minute, Cresswell made the kind of play he made every few minutes in his first year when he cleared a Fabregas pass from the byline back into the box. Without that touch the match would have been level. Minutes later, West Ham had a shout for a penalty when Arnautovic cut into the box and tried to get the ball around a charging Christensen. The ball clearly hit the defenders hand, but Anthony Taylor judged it to be accidental and waved play on.

The Hammers had a few mini opportunities that they wasted. Arnautovic and Antonio broke on a counter but the pass to Arnautovic was a second late and put the lone goal scorer offside. Masuaku showed more endeavor and won another corner, but Lanzini wasted it. The fight was there. The quality was not.

Cresswell made his first mistake of the match in the 68th minute when he allowed Willian to beat him on the edge of the area. Cresswell had to bring him down just outside the box, which gave Chelsea a great opportunity from a set piece. But Reid got a crucial block in West Ham weathered yet another storm.

Moyes made his first change in the 69th minute, and while I welcomed the addition of Sakho I did not like the removal of Arnautovic. Antonio looked utterly gassed, and a few minutes later when he completely ignored a pass from Noble while talking to Moyes on the sideline it was clear his time was done and Ayew's began. Although it didn't take him long to look like a mistake when he wasted a precious opportunity to at least run some clock by sending a truly useless pass attempt into the lower atmosphere. He also grabbed his hamstring, which brought back terrifying memories of Kieron Dyer.

Chelsea had a glorious chance in the 83rd minute when Kante found Morata in front of Adrian. Morata tried to one time it but sent his point blank shot wide. Moments later Hazard an opportunity but sent his curling attempt over the bar.

"It's coming" said a text from my best mate, Jon.

I agreed. I could not see a way for us to hold on. But Cresswell blocked shots. Reid blocked passes. Ogbonna cleared the area. Zabaleta ran his socks off. Noble left everything on a few blades of grass. Even Ayew tracked back and made a good touch. It all topped off with Willian being so flustered he was whistled for an illegal throw, effectively ending the match.

Final Score
West Ham 1
Chelsea 0

Even if we had given up a late equalizer, it would have been another spirited performance from the squad. They did things I don't think we had seen in quite a long time, such as close out a match. The three points may be the most impressive of the season if we do in fact survive. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. We are still in the bottom three, and I have no illusions that our board will ever learn from past mistakes. But today was a day to feel good again about our club.

Yeah, our club. Not theirs.

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Matthew Etherington sums up West Ham United performance in one tweet
HITC
Subhankar Mondal

West Ham United won against Chelsea at the London Stadium in the Premier League on Saturday. Matthew Etherington has taken to social networking site Twitter to give his reaction to West Ham United's win against Chelsea. West Ham got the better of Chelsea 1-0 at the London Stadium in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon. Marko Arnautovic's goal in the sixth minute proved to be the difference between the sides in the London derby. Former West Ham winger Etherington was following the game, and the 36-year-old has revelled in the win for David Moyes's win. Etherington has pretty much summed up the Hammers' performance against Chelsea in one tweet. Former West Ham striker John Hartson has also taken to Twitter to give his reaction to the win for the London club.

Matthew Etherington
✔
@mattyethers
Best team performance I've seen for a long time from @WestHamUtd Disciplined and defended well in numbers, so much desire throughout!! What a brilliantly worked goal as well, buzzing! #COYI #WHUCHE
2:23 PM - Dec 9, 2017

John Hartson
✔
@JohnHartson10
Huge 3 points for the Hammers ! 👍🏻
2:26 PM - Dec 9, 2017

West Ham defended brilliantly against Chelsea and showed great discipline at the back. True, the Hammers defended deep, but there was no other way for them to win against Antonio Conte's side. West Ham fans should be pleased with Moyes's side's performance against Chelsea, especially at the back.

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