West Ham earned their third successive win in all competitions with an impressive 3-1 win over London rivals Fulham. A second loss in a row for Marco Silva's side means they drop down to 9th position in the league. Meanwhile, West Ham move up to 13th.
The hosts entered this match off the back of a positive 1-0 win in Belgium as a late Gianluca Scamacca goal saw them better RSC Anderlecht in the UEFA Europa Conference League.
Fulham, on the other hand, were returning to action from a dismal 4-1 loss to a very accomplished Newcastle United side under Eddie Howe.
The Cottagers also came into the game with a huge setback through missing clinical star-striker Aleksandar Mitrović to an injury to the foot. West Ham, similarly, had one player missing, with Maxwel Cornet being unavailable for selection.
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Story of the match
The first goal of the game came the way of Fulham, with an early counter-attack against the run of play, with Andres Pereira finishing past Fabianski in the far top corner of the net.
The equaliser came through a clumsy foul on Craig Dawson from an incoming West Ham corner, which led to a penalty. Jarrod Bowen converted.
Fulham manager Marco Silva made his frustrations at his side apparent from the touchline as he was questioning why Andres Pereira was set up to mark Craig Dawson, despite the obvious power and height disparity.
The hosts, in turn, took the lead not too long after the break, with Gianluca Scamacca scoring a controversial goal, which was allowed after a lengthy VAR check.
The Fulham bench, including manager Marco Silva, were once again visibly outraged at the decision for the Scamacca goal. They were insisting that the ball had struck the hand of the striker before he managed to finish the chance.
The Hammers, despite this, rounded off their victory through a powerful Michail Antonio run through the Fulham back-line, and after some disjointed defending, was able to finish into an open net.
Regardless of the scoreline, this encounter could have gone either way, with Fulham also making some very enticing chances of their own. It would be fair to suggest that The Hammers won through individual spells of quality which they have at their disposal, which allowed them to be more clinical in front of goal.
David Moyes also appeared to have his game management spot on today, also. When his side went 2-1 up, he made it very hard for the visitors to get back into the game. Through switching to a back five formation, the West Ham defence was very compact and had no trouble absorbing any pressure in a low-block.
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Player of the match
Despite very important contributions in all areas of the pitch from West Ham, it's hard to overlook club captain Declan Rice as the standout performer once again.
He boasted some incredible stats for the game, including 3 important interceptions for his team. He wasn't just defensively sound, however. He completed 22 passes in the final third and was instrumental in much of West Ham's transitional play today. A superb captains performance.
