Manchester City beats West Ham by 3-1
Manchester City maintained their 100 per cent start to the season but after a first-half of near perfection they were far from flawless as they face a spirited comeback from a depleted West Ham United.
There is also the concern that striker Sergio Aguero could face a retrospective FA ban after appearing to elbow defender Winston Reid in an incident that was not picked up by referee Andre Marriner. If banned the first game Aguero would miss would be the derby against Manchester United on September 10.
Five games; five wins and three in the Premier League with City joining United and Chelsea at the top of the table, albeit taking its summit by dint of goal difference.
That Manchester derby, at Old Trafford, will be the first real test for Pep Guardiola’s City – and how they will not want to go into it without Aguero - although they were pushed here by West Ham who exposed their vulnerability at times. Two down inside 18 minutes it had felt like an exercise in damage limitation for West Ham until Michail Antonio’s goal gave them hope.
There was further concern for City – and England, with Sam Allardyce naming his first squad – when the imperious John Stones went down injured after being caught, painfully, above the knee by West Ham defender Arthur Masuaku. Although he was able to carry on, Stones then departed early in the second-half after taking another blow.
City raced ahead with Raheem Sterling and Fernandinho with Sterling, in particular, rejuvenated under Guardiola. West Ham played three central defenders but they were all too easily undone as, on seven minutes, David Silva worked his way across the front of the penalty area and released Nolito, inside wing-back Antonio, who switched positions after the break, and he cut the ball back for Sterling to side-foot home his first league goal of the season.
Even this early it had been coming with a series of corners and shots from Aguero and Silva and then a second goal arrived after Sterling was pulled back. Kevin De Bruyne whipped in the free-kick with Cheikhou Kouyate allowing Fernandinho to run free and simply direct a powerful header beyond Adrian.
There should have been a third goal when West Ham were again cut open down their right and the ball was pulled back to De Bruyne who appeared set to score only for his shot to be deflected narrowly wide off James Collins.
Just as it seemed like a case of how many City would score, West Ham rallied. Masuaku did well, creating space against Pablo Zabaleta for a left-wing cross that evaded Willy Caballero, who was under pressure from Ashley Fletcher and for Antonio to rise and head home from close-range.
It came moments after Aguero had, wrongly, been pulled up for offside as he ran through and nicked the ball ahead of Adrian and changed the tone of the game. West Ham suddenly sensed an opportunity while, stung, City attempted to put the game to bed.
De Bruyne slipped a pass to Aguero who shifted the ball to his left but could only shoot into the side-netting while substitute Samir Nasri, making his first appearance of the season, was put clear only for his first shot to saved by Adrian and then his follow-up to be cleared off the line. In injury-time Silva’s shot cannoned off the post, City worked the ball back into the area, through Silva and Nasri and Sterling took the ball past Adrian before tapping it into the net from the tightest of angles.
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