Another Chelsea away victory, more positive signs for Enzo Maresca, and the sight of Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali sat together in the London Stadium stands. If all seemed harmonious at Chelsea, then perhaps we need to talk about West Ham.
After two previous home defeats, the East End jury was already out on Julen Lopetegui. Many Hammers fans were behind phasing out David Moyes after years of creditable if often not particularly exciting fare to get in an adventurous continental replacement. That the Basque is not one of Europe’s great football liberals has already been noticed.
Can he organise a defence? Certainly not against Chelsea. Their goals came via great, aching gaps in his team. There was zero defensive rigour in Nicolas Jackson’s early goal, and those that followed were much the same, the die cast by its almost casual nature.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka, the right-back, was looking in the other direction as Jackson was sent away by a quick free-kick from Jadon Sancho, Edson Álvarez not much more alert, chasing in vain as the striker beat Alphonse Areola.
Two games, two assists for Sancho, though like last week at Bournemouth, the scorer was left with plenty to do, even if Areola might have done better. Christopher Nkunku, despite his goal at Bournemouth, stayed on the bench until the second half but Sancho, his fellow sub at the Vitality, was given a first start. Chelsea, with their eye for a deal, believe they have pulled off a coup in his loan and cut-price transfer fee from Manchester United. Perhaps chaos at Chelsea suits Sancho more than dysfunction at United. Footballers can be funny like that.
And in Jackson, the rawest of materials, Chelsea may have a decent striker, or at least an asset who can be cashed in for more than he cost, as is the priority at Stamford Bridge these days. Toothless at Bournemouth, he was excellent in east London, his second goal taken beautifully, with the outside of his boot. Moisés Caicedo had – and far too easily – bisected Álvarez and Maximilian Kilman with a jabbed through ball. Just 18 minutes in and already boos and whistles from the home fans while Lopetegui raged on the sidelines.
Chelsea are still hardly watertight themselves. As at Bournemouth and even when running riot at Wolves last month, they remain vulnerable to opponents running beyond their midfield. They were fortunate, too. PGMOL chief Howard Webb has some explaining to do after VAR Stuart Attwell ruled Wesley Fofana’s manhandling of Crysencio Summerville was “fleeting”.
Injustice briefly fired up the Hammers, Lopetegui looked just as red-faced as Moyes, covering the match as a pundit in Doha, ever could be. With eight minutes of the first half still remaining, he’d seen enough. Tomas Soucek replaced the anonymous Guido Rodríguez, a tactical change aiming to add muscle, and the new arrival’s low, unchallenging shot was the first save Robert Sánchez was asked to make.
Within 70 seconds of the restart, the three points were headed westwards down the District Line, Jackson again sent through, and as Kilman back-pedalled, he was foxed by the striker’s intelligent pass. Cole Palmer is too good a finisher to let such an opportunity pass up, and his shot rattled off a post. As Maresca celebrated, Lopetegui seethed. For all the attacking talent Chelsea have stockpiled, each goal was wholly preventable. Once Mohammed Kudus had lost the ball in midfield, no protection had been offered to Kilman or Areola.
As Summerville was removed for Michail Antonio, there were boos, though another malfunction in the new Hammers’ setup is that the best of Jarrod Bowen comes off the flanks, and not as a centre-forward asked to hold up the ball.
Sancho and Palmer meanwhile departed to applause from the home fans, Nkunku and João Felix arriving, the former showing his eye for goal with a header that forced a fine save from Areola.
Lopetegui replaced Lucas Paquetá, a disappointment under the new regime, with Andy Irving, a Scot signed from Austria Klagenfurt almost a year ago, making his Hammers bow. Irving arrived into a zombified contest. That West Ham’s season was beginning with three straight home league defeats, an unwelcome club record, had long been decided.
