West Ham United came back from 2-1 down to seal a 4-1 Premier League win against Newcastle United at St. James Park on Sunday.
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West Ham United came back from 2-1 down to seal a 4-1 Premier League win against Newcastle United at St. James Park on Sunday.
Newcastle, buoyed by a near-capacity St. James Park, started brightly. They were rewarded for showing some attacking promise early on itself. Allan Saint-Maximan, who can dribble rings around defences, was the catalyst.
He twisted and turned and thus found some space on the right wing. He floated in a good ball that Calum Wilson only needed to touch to convert.
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— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) August 15, 2021
But West Ham did not sit back either. The side lacked some creativity early on but that did not stop them from going forward and looking to create chances.
They got their equaliser just 13 minutes later although it came about in strange fashion. Aaron Cresswell sent in a low ball that trickled in but the goal was ruled out for offside. Jarrod Bowen was well beyond the last man and the call made sense.
However, a VAR check showed the ball touched no one on its way into the net. Bowen did touch the ball but only after it crossed the line. Thus the goal stood.
The game opened up a bit after that but no side made too many clear cut chances. That changed when Matt Ritchie floated in a cross into a dangerous area.
Jacob Murphy was on hand to head home from close range and restore Newcastle’s lead.
West Ham came out knowing they needed an early goal. They got just that thanks to a nice little ball from Michail Antonio. His cross was nodded in by Said Benrahma.
Saint-Maximan caused trouble with his dribbling shortly thereafter, but his fizzed cross was dealt with by Lukasz Fabianski.
But the goal would come at the other end. Murphy fouled Pablo Fornals and the referee duly pointed to the spot. Antonio’s spot kick was saved but Tomas Soucek was on hand to convert the rebound.
The Hammers got a fourth minutes later. A quick counterattack saw Benrahma on the left wing and running at the Magpies’ defence.
He put Antonio through, who made a lung-bursting run to provide support. The striker took the ball in his stride and unleashed a perfect finish into the bottom left corner.
After that it was a case of damage limitation. West Ham did continue to threaten on the break, even as Newcastle were lumbering up front.
A double substitution from Newcastle manager Steve Bruce did little to change things. West Ham thus walked away with all three points.
