London: Marko Arnautovic’s early goal proved decisive as West Ham stunned Chelsea to claim a surprise 1-0 Premier League win, Saturday. The Hammers ended a run of eight successive Premier League matches without a win, giving David Moyes his first triumph at the club.
West Ham were cruelly denied a point late on at Manchester City last time out, but against Chelsea they looked almost impenetrable, frustrating Antonio Conte’s men throughout and preventing them from cutting the gap to Pep Guardiola’s leaders.
This was the 41st consecutive Premier League matchday in which Moyes started in the relegation zone, setting a new record, but his West Ham side showed plenty to suggest that they are by no means a lost cause during the first half.
They had the lead within six minutes when Manuel Lanzini found Marko Arnautovic on the edge of the box and the Austrian darted into the area, jinked onto his left and sent a curling strike around Andreas Christensen into the bottom corner. The goal was his first for the club.
With that approach working so well in the first half, Moyes had no intention of changing things and allowed Chelsea to have the lion’s share of possession.
Chelsea threw men forward in desperate fashion towards the end, but West Ham’s stubbornness gave them little hope, as Conte’s men were left trailing City by 11 points, a margin which could be extended, Sunday after the Manchester derby.
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