Manchester City vs. West Ham: Score and Reaction from 2015 Premier League Match
Manchester City fell to a shock 2-1 defeat against visiting West Ham at the Etihad, as the east London club's amazing away form continued in the Premier League.
Goals from Victor Moses and Diafra Sakho gave the Hammers the points despite a strike from Kevin De Bruyne in his first City start—and a relentless onslaught from the Sky Blues in the second half.
City lost captain Vincent Kompany to injury in their recent Champions League loss to Juventus and gave a first start to new defensive signing Nicolas Otamendi. City was also without David Silva, who suffered an injury in the warm-up.
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West Ham boss Slaven Bilic was looking for a third consecutive away win, and his side got off to the perfect start.
The Hammers shocked the home contingent in the opening moments of the contest as they took the lead through Moses. The Chelsea loanee was fed by the impressive France international Dimitri Payet, and Moses finished from 25 yards in style, firing past Joe Hart.
BeIN Sports presenter Richard Keys had strong words to say about the goal, berating the Premier League loan system:
Sky Sports' Hayley McQueen also commented on the quality of Moses' effort:
The visitors doubled their advantage midway through the first half as City's inept defending was punished.
Winston Reid's header, from a corner, kept the ball in the danger zone. Pedro Obiang kept the ball alive as it dropped in the box, giving Sakho a simple chance from five yards to score a scrappy goal.
The Manchester Evening News' James Robson berated City's back four:
However, the home side pushed forward in the final part of the half and were rewarded after a beautiful strike from new boy De Bruyne. The player grabbed his first goal in English football after a swift attack from City, with the Belgian striking low from 25 yards past Hammers goalkeeper Adrian.
Bleacher Report UK injected humour into the former Chelsea player's strike, suggesting Jose Mourinho would be looking on from west London:
Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News spoke of the loss of Silva, influencing City's poor performance, at half-time:
Despite City's issues without Silva, and in defence, Squawka.com highlighted the goal threat of the home side:
Martin Demichelis came on at half-time as City tried to solidify their back four, replacing the faltering Eliaquim Mangala. The Etihad team came out of the blocks fast, pinning West Ham back into their final third and dominating territory.
Sergio Aguero went close only to be thwarted by Adrian, but the City charge continued regardless. The Hammers were beginning to look fragile as De Bruyne and Aguero streamed forward with pace and threat.
Raheem Sterling and Yaya Toure started to influence proceedings, forcing West Ham to play an overtly defensive style as the half progressed. Sterling was replaced for the final 25 minutes of the game by Wilfried Bony as City looked for an increased threat in the box.
The match turned into 11 men versus a goalkeeper, as Adrian made countless saves against City's illustrious attack, with West Ham having no penetration into their opponent's half of the pitch. City had a huge shout for a penalty in the 74th minute as Aleksandar Kolarov tumbled in the box, but the official waved away the claims.
Squawka.com highlighted the brilliant debut of De Bruyne, sharing his heat map:
The Sky Blues continued to pile on the pressure in the final minutes of the game, but West Ham held firm for a famous victory.
It was a scintillating game of football, with City showing they have irresistible options in attack. However, without Kompany and Silva, the home team lost leadership and edge, and the Etihad club do not have replacements for the alpha male players.
It was a game of two halves for West Ham, who were forced to defend deep in the second half after counter-attacking City in the first.
Bilic's men did well to survive such an onslaught in the closing stages of the game, with Adrian in tremendous form, and it was the east London side who claimed the win and the points.
Post-Match Reaction
Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini spoke about his dismay at his side's defeat, and gave an update on the status of Silva's injury and absence, per the club's official Twitter account:
West Ham coach Bilic gave his team special praise in his post-match press conference, as reported by the Hammers' official website:
""It is great for the club and I am so happy for everyone at West Ham, but especially for the players because you cannot win here without playing well. They created some chances and in the second half they were fighting like a unit from the goalkeeper to the last man. At times we were lucky but you have to be when you are winning at their stadium. They are such a massive team.
City and West Ham both feature again in the Premier League next Saturday, with the Sky Blues away to Tottenham Hotspur, and the Hammers hosting Norwich City.
