West Ham grind out their first win of the season, pipping the Cherries.
Unlike last season, a 4-3 ring-ding affair this was not, but West Ham won’t mind. There was no Callum Wilson hat-trick either, and the Hammers mind even less as to that. It was, in truth, a dour match, where the absence of quality stained proceedings, until the final furlong of the match, when Gokhan Tore produced a cross from which Michail Antonio simply couldn’t miss. Bournemouth were down to ten men by that time, courtesy of Harry Arter’s twin brain-snaps, and West Ham were the convincing force in this turgid match, despite their staggering injury list.
Bournemouth’s quality deficit came in spite of a relatively fit squad; their approach, especially away from home, is very limited, with Callum Wilson isolated and impotent for huge swathes of the contest. Only a couple of speculative shots tested Adrian in the meat of the match, before some spanked chances arrived late, both of which the West Ham keeper repelled well.
Come on you irons!!! @WestHamUtd @premierleague #WHUBOU ⚒ pic.twitter.com/bIs2K5CDvO
— Michail Antonio (@Michailantonio) August 21, 2016
Andy Carroll joins swelling injury list
It was confirmed before kick off that Andy Carroll would not be in the matchday squad. It was thought that the striker – who has played in almost every league game over the last six months for West Ham – had put his injury woes behind him. Not so, as a knee knock picked up in Romania mid-week now sidelines the Geordie for what Slaven Bilic exasperatedly described pre-match as “a few weeks”.
West Ham’s injury table is buckling at its hinges, with 7 potential first-teamers convalescing, including record-signing Andre Ayew and star talisman Dimitri Payet. Also odd was Gabriel Ogbonna’s presence on the bench; the Italian is the normal first-choice centre back, but has ridden the pine for the last two games, with James Collins lining up on the pitch alongside Winston Reid. Perhaps even West Ham’s named substitutes are secretly injured as well, such is depth of their torrid, limping mire.
Devastated about my recent injured but I'm still the 15-20 goal man! #COYI
— Andy Carroll (@AndyTCarroll) August 21, 2016
Kouyate filling Payet void with pure disruptive athleticism
With Dimitri Payet’s sparkle relegated to the memories of the 52,000 season ticket holders in the stands – for now, at least – someone had to fill the void the talented Frenchman’s absence leaves. This was left to Cheikhou Kouyate, and he attempted to replace Payet’s skills with his own brand of all-action physicality. With Harvard Nordveit shuttling dutifully behind him, Kouyate was given an even more advanced roving brief than usual, and strode powerfully around the upper-midfield area.
If Payet plays around people – picking passes few others see, or jinking around tacklers – then Kouyate runs through them, or past them, gliding in a way Inspector Gadget might, out-striding – on his go-go telescopic legs – a scuttling criminal. It’s an imperfect solution, one that injuries have forced, but it’s an awesome sight. It was from his powerful, impeded run that Harry Arter earned his second yellow card, opening up a period of late dominance for West Ham, a period in which they scored their winner.
When you win your first @premierleague game at your new home… [1-0] ⚒ #WHUBOU pic.twitter.com/Pc7LQTEE6Y
— West Ham United (@WestHamUtd) August 21, 2016
Ibe is a valuable piece, but not a central one
Keeping in the mind the giga-transfers that have come since Bournemouth bought him, at £15 million, Jordan Ibe’s transfer fee doesn’t seem so outrageous now. But it isn’t pocket money for Eddie Howe, and a considerable amount of pressure heaped itself onto Ibe’s shoulders when he became a Cherry. However, if the thought was for Ibe to be the central jewel in the Bournemouth crown, it may have been fanciful thinking, at least on the limited evidence we’ve seen so far.
A pass when a shot would have done, an over-hit corner, and an awful attempt at a Ronaldinho-vs-Seaman-esque free kick. These were the most memorable Ibe moments from this contest, lowlights all of them. Wingers have to be supreme to be the focal points of a team’s attack; Eden Hazard comes to mind. Ibe isn’t on that level, nowhere near it in fact, and he was peripheral for much of this match.
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