West Ham secured their second 1-1 draw in a row last Saturday with a resolute performance against a Chelsea side somewhat rejuvenated by the return of João Félix. David Moyes’ side followed almost exactly the same pattern displayed in the Newcastle game – starting with a ragged, disconnected, and lethargic opening 20-25 minutes before reacting strongly in the second quarter of the game and managing the second half well. If the Hammers are to turn these draws into wins, they’ll need to massively improve their intensity levels from minute one.
Łukasz Fabiański – 8
Fabiański made one really important save in this match to deny Noni Madueke a first half goal that would’ve put Chelsea 2-1 in the lead just after West Ham’s equaliser. The keeper also made a vital intervention to deny Kai Havertz a goal from Mason Mount’s cutback in the 78th minute and deserves credit for claiming a corner and launching a promising counter, something the Pole is often criticised for not doing, early in the second half.
Thilo Kehrer – 7
Whilst the entire back three struggled defensively in the first half – Kehrer continuously proved to be a reliable progressive option in possession in this match – Kehrer’s second half performance impressed. The German was far more proactive in his backing up of Vladimír Coufal’s aggressive pressure against Chelsea’s left-back, and his more positive positioning led to opportunities to turn the ball over higher up the pitch and stop the defence from being exposed to direct balls into Havertz. He also did well defending the back post from crosses in the second period – something that had been a problem in his performances to this point – with a couple of good headed clearances to deny chances for Félix and Havertz.
Angelo Ogbonna – 5
Ogbonna was hugely fortunate that Havertz slightly mistimed his run in the 22nd minute so that when the German latched onto Mykhailo Mudryk’s through ball, rounded Fabiański, and slotted home, the goal was ruled out for offside. The centre-back had been drawn out by Félix’s excellent positioning – standing still in the space between West Ham’s midfield and defence and presenting just enough of a threat to tempt Ogbonna out of the backline, thus opening the space for Havertz to run in behind. While there were some positive moments – his vital challenge on Havertz to stop the striker from being able to head Ben Chilwell’s delivery goalward was probably the pick of the bunch – there were far too many mistakes dotted throughout this match, crystallising the fact that Ogbonna will likely struggle more against more fluid frontlines like Chelsea’s.
Nayef Aguerd – 4
We may have seen the Aguerd we’re used to in the second half, before the Moroccan was forced to come off late in the match with what looked like a groin injury, but the centre-back’s first half performance was miles from the impressive levels we’ve seen him set in recent weeks. He was hugely fortunate to see his failure to clear go unpunished when Félix’s first opening goal was called back for offside but this was then followed up with a total failure to contain the Portuguese attackers movement in the box as Félix pushed him off and drifted in behind to slot home from Enzo Fernández’s expert delivery. The disastrous first half continued as Aguerd failed to make meaningful contact with an excellent Saïd Benrahma delivery after a short corner in the 30th minute, and just a few minutes later he was beaten by a drop of the shoulder from Madueke to let in a dangerous shot before passing the ball straight to Mudryk in the box on the second phase rather than clearing. In the same couple of minutes, Aguerd then played both Madueke and Havertz onside from another second phase attack while standing still as the rest of the defence stepped out to stop Félix from being able to simply dink the ball over the top. He was hugely fortunate that just one of these mistakes was punished.
Vladimír Coufal – 8
Coufal’s individual actions were a vital part of the turnaround after a shoddy first 25 minutes on Saturday. The wing-back stepped out of the backline to initiate more aggressive pressure on Marc Cucurella and managed to finally stop Chelsea from breezing through build-up to progress and attack West Ham’s backline. This often required pressures that would take Coufal all the way up into the frontline but the right-back carried this out with the necessary intensity to unsettle Chelsea’s defenders and stop dangerous passes straight into Havertz, Félix, or Mudryk. And Coufal did an excellent job on the Ukrainian too, defending with aggression (leaving a foot in on a couple of challenges) so as to stop the winger from feeling comfortable receiving in tight spaces. Combine all of this positive defensive work with the fact that it was Coufal’s delivery that led to the equaliser and the match stats that back up Coufal’s impressive progressive contribution in possession – his 14 combined progressive passes and carries place him first on the West Ham team for this work – and this was a really positive all-round performance.
Lucas Paquetá – N/A
Withdrawn early in the match with a shoulder injury.
Declan Rice – 6
By Rice’s usual impeccable standards, this was an underwhelming showing but one that makes a whole lot more sense if he had been struggling with illness prior to the match. The midfielder struggled to get to grips with the pace early in the game before playing a key role in resetting the team and applying more intense pressure on Chelsea’s midfielders as the Blues tried to build-up from the back. One poor decision to not follow a threatening Chilwell surge through the middle of the pitch aside, Rice was solid but unspectacular.
Emerson – 8
Emerson seems to have turned a corner recently with some much-improved performances in the last few matches and this positive form continued on Saturday. His equaliser was a perfect example of the kind of goal Moyes will be hoping to see more often with one wing-back providing and the other moving in at the back-post to seal off anything that comes through. Whilst he was beaten a little too easily on a couple of occasions, this was largely a positive defensive performance too as he locked down Madueke as the game went on and gave Chelsea no choice but to make changes in the second half that refocused the attack away from their use of 1v1 specialists in wide areas.
Jarrod Bowen – 6
Whilst Bowen’s first 25 minutes were borderline embarrassing as the winger continuously lost the ball, lost duels, and failed to capitalise on positive attacking situations, things did recover with his wonderful role in the goal – a clever flick to the back-post from Coufal’s cross. His second half performance was much stronger – he played a delightful cross in for Tomáš Souček after working the space to get past Chilwell, and bought an important free-kick off the substitute left-back late in the game as Chelsea’s frustrations grew. Still, he was fortunate to see his mistake in failing to seal off the box after a corner go unpunished as Rice raced back to stop Fernández from being able to play Havertz or Madueke through on goal.
Michail Antonio – 8
Antonio was outstanding off the ball again as he continued to familiarise himself with a screening-oriented defensive job; he picked his moments to press really well to force Chelsea into uncomfortable situations out wide that often led to turnovers. His hold-up play was excellent as he combined well with Emerson to set Benrahma away in the first half and got the better of Benoît Badiashile to play Coufal through early in the second half. Chelsea’s French centre-back struggled badly with Antonio and this was shown again just before Antonio was withdrawn as the striker dropped in to receive from Aguerd before spinning in behind and drawing a foul that saw the defender booked. An impressive display.
Saïd Benrahma – 5
Much like Bowen, Benrahma struggled in the opening 25 minutes as he found himself continually lost positionally. Although the wingers arguably found themselves with an impossible job as Chelsea had the extra man in first and second phase build-up until Coufal was sent forward from wing-back to help widen the first defensive line, they failed to react well and Benrahma continually made poor decisions to jump out and press allowing himself to be played around and leaving the backline exposed. He was also the least involved of the front three and struggled to make much of an impact before he was replaced by Flynn Downes in the 67th minute.
Tomáš Souček – 6
Aside from a spectacular 72nd minute where Souček ran into the channel, played a delightful backheel for Coufal to set up Danny Ings, ran back and won the ball off Mount, combined again with Coufal to get away down the right wing, and played a lovely cross in for Ings again, the Czech midfielder put in a pretty middling performance. He struggled to add much in possession and was very fortunate to not concede a late penalty when he blocked Conor Gallagher’s shot with his left hand.
Danny Ings, Flynn Downes – 6
Neither added much until their pressing in the last ten minutes helped stop Chelsea from forcing West Ham back for extended periods.
Ben Johnson – N/A
(He was actually really good!)
Chelsea: Kepa (6), James (8), Silva (8), Badiashile (5), Cucurella (4), Loftus-Cheek (7), Fernández (8), Madueke (5), Félix (8), Mudryk (7), Havertz (6); Ziyech (5), Chilwell (7), Mount (7).
