Key events
Housekeeping: I didn’t see anyone come on for Chukwuemeka so was wondering if he’d definitely gone off, but can now confirm he has, there just wasn’t time to get Mudryk on in his stead.
But before that, some joy: here’s an Afrobeats and amapiano set from the mighty Front/Back Accra, delivered to you by the man DJ Shagy.
HALF-TIME: West Ham United 1-1 Chelsea
That was a really fun half, West Ham going in front with some classic Ward-Prowse behaviour before Chelsea, led by Raheem Sterling, found a terrific equaliser then missed a penalty to go in front. The second 45 should be decent…
45+8 min Ach, I was wrong. Chukwuemeka hobbles off.
45+6 min Chukwuemeka gets a bang on the knee and is down. I think he’ll be OK, especially with 15 minutes to recover. But in the meantime, he’s receiving treatment.
45+4 min “I completely agree with you that recent World cup wasn’t a high-quality tournament,” says Bogdan Kotarlic. “It was exciting, that is for sure, but the level of football was relatively low. I didn’t see so many great players – Messi, Mbappe and that would be that.”
And Messi was well past his best. I don’t think we’ve had a great international side since Spain 08-12, and before that France 99-03.
45+3 min But what about Raheem Sterling?! On the ball outside the box he suddenly explodes, whizzing by Paqueta and Ward-Prowse before slipping over a cross … which is missed both by Jackson and Chukwuemeka, Chilwell’s low effort then blocked away. Sterling is imposing himself here in a way I’ve not seen for quite some time.
45+2 min I mentioned Suarez earlier, with regard to beating men near the by-line; this is why.
45 min We’ll have six added minutes.
45 min Paqueta has a go at Sterling, then he turns away from Benrahma, who has a kick and misses, so Emerson makes sure, scything a couple of inches off his legs so Sterling issues a return barge. This precipitates minor altercations before Emerson is booked.
43 min Areola saves Fernandez’s penalty!
It’s a decent height for the keeper, to his right, and he does really well to wait until Fernandez shoots, getting good purchase on his save to send the ball to safety! Fernandez is good, but maybe penalties aren’t his thing.
42 min Was the tackle inside the box? It was on the line, I think, so yes … and VAR agrees.
PENALTY TO CHELSEA!
41 min Colwill into Sterling who turns, dashes away from Paqueta then, as he arrives at the box, Soucek ploughs through him on its edge for no reason whatsoever, and the ref points to the spot. Sterling has been excellent these last 15 minutes.
40 min “You weren’t impressed by Mac Allister at the World Cup??!!” asks John Potter. “The 2022 World Cup? He was one of the players of the tournament for my money, and rated by plenty of others too. Just what was it he did that was so unimpressive for you?”
The standard was low. He played alright and I’m not saying he’s not good, but his performances were decent and no better. Was he great, dominant or definitive in any game? I don’t think so, and i doubt Matthaus was impressed.
38 min Fernandez clips a decent pass inside Emerson as Sterling dashes onto it from on his other side … but a poor first touch means he can make nothing of it.
37 min West Ham win a throw down the right, Coufal hurls in, and when Soucek’s presence means the ball winds up at the feet of Paqueta, edge of the box, he forces a bobbler – yes, Trev is in attendance – that skips just wide.
36 min West Ham clear the corner and Antonio barrels away down the line so Disasi slides in to abort his endeavour, wearing the inevitable booking.
34 min Jackson looks a proper player and again, sent away by Sterling, he skates onto the ball. He can’t make anything of it, but then Srterling tugs back Paqueta, Paqueta waits for the free-kick, none is forthcoming, and Sterling sneaks off with the ball to win a corner. Paqueta is then booked for complaining, and you can fill in your own blank here:
33 min The problem when you play as West Ham, sitting back and inviting pressure, is that if you concede, as they have, switching momentum can prove difficult.
32 min Chelsea win a corner down the left and Fernandez swings in, but Colwill can inly glance his header wide.
31 min It really is incredible how much skill and awareness so many players now have. The difference these days is mental, even more than it was before.
GOAL! West Ham United 1-1 Chelsea (Chukwuemeka 29)
Brilliant work from Jackson down the by-line, Suarez-style, sees West Ham poke away. But they sustain the attack ands Colwill finds Chilwell, who hits the line and cuts back. He doesn’t pick out a man, but when Zouma stretches to clear, Chukwuemeka collects down the left of the box, sways inside then nips inside Soucek who’s off for jellied eels, and rams a curler into the far side-netting. That is a splendid finish.
27 min Back to Fernandez, though he wasn’t rubbish, I wasn’t especially impressed with him at the World Cup – nor Mac Allister for that matter – he’s gone up a level since then. He looks to have the lot.
26 min Jackson touches off to Sterling, who slides a cunning return through the middle … but Jackson can’t quite gather a pass that’s perhaps a little behind him, and West Ham get the ball away. They look pretty comfy sat in their mid-to-low block, and Chelsea struggling to create anything serious.
24 min Fernandez looks by far the best player on this pitch and he appears on the right of the box to toss a cross towards the far post … that Chilwell glances wide.
23 min Nice from Chelsea, the ball moving from Fernandez to Thiago and down the left to Chilwell, who finds Silva. A clever punch down the line the sets Chuwuemeka away and he shakes off Coufal but, driving along the by-line to the box, can’t pick out an irate Argentinian.
22 min Here’s Gallagher again, taking possession from Enzo outside the box and, with no one doing anything, taking time to line up an effort that the keeper fists to safety.
20 min Again we see the value of Ward-Prowse, Areola collecting Gallagher’s corner via a head.
20 min Fernandez’’s passing is so accurate and astute. He slides a really good one in behind the West Ham defence, inside-right channel, and Sterling wins a corner off Aguerd.
18 min I can’t lie, I don’t like Sterling as a striker and I’d not be surprised to see he phased out of Pochettino’s first XI. But here he is driving at Emerson on the outside and thumping over a cross that Areola claims easily enough
16 min We see the goal again, and that Gallagher, focused on the man in front – his man – didn’t bother to look at the one behind. Has anyone ever seen a zone score a goal? No? Well that’s still what can happen if a team mark man-to-man and not zonally.
15 min “Make your own,” responds David Crowther on the chilli mayo issue. “Only requires two ingredients:
– chilli
– mayo
After which, make it as hot as you like it. Processed food relies on lowest common denominator effect.”
I agree. I recently enjoyed an epiphany otherwise known as being ill for a month, and am now endeavouring to change my behaviour.
14 min West Ham clear but Chelsea box them, so when Fernandez spreads to Chilwell, he has men to aim for in the middle, Jackson leaping ahead of a better-placed man behind to get under a header that goes over the top.
13 min Soucek down the line and Antonio ragdolls Silva but can’t then find a suitable pass. So Chelsea counter and Jackson, chasing back, robs Aguerd, setting Sterling away … only for Aguerd to bring him down. He’s booked and Enzo will now curl in the free-kick…
11 min “Your question regarding chili mayo is undoing some of that good healthy-eating commentary that you set up before,” writes Jordan Pickering. “But since one should never be without good mayo and even gooder chili sauce, why clutter the fridge with some off-the-shelf muck?”
Yes, that’s fair. I don’t like mayo and am in the process of kicking my 40-year-old salad cream habit, but do make my own hot sauce: scotch bonnets, lime juice, bit of water, blitz.
10 min Yup, Jackson went too soon and was offside. Areloa gets away with a right boob.
9 min Penalty Chelsea! Jackson races onto a through-pass from from Enzo, tips it away from Areola, who ploughs through him going nowhere – that is such silly behaviour – but then the flag goes up for offside. No penalty Chelsea! But how will VAR see things?
GOAL! West Ham United 1-0 Chelsea (Aguerd 7)
AND HAVE A LOOK! This time, new kid picks out Aguerd at the back stick, pulling off Chukwuemeka and Gallagher, heading down powerfully to give his side the lead! Ward-Prowse is a menace!