West Ham storm back to overcome Southampton

Grady Diangana tries to escape the attention of Matt Targett (Getty)

A superb brace by Felipe Anderson gave West Ham United a 2-1 comeback win at Southampton in a pulsating Premier League match on Thursday.

The result lifted West Ham to ninth in the table on 27 points from 19 games while Southampton stayed 16th on 15 points, three above the relegation zone after suffering their first home defeat in five matches.

The game sprung to life when Southampton forward Nathan Redmond bundled the ball home with his shoulder in the 50th minute after visiting keeper Lukazs Fabianski parried his initial shot and Oriol Romeu's rebound.

In the absence of first-choice strikers Marko Arnautovic and Javier Hernandez, West Ham lacked cutting edge until Brazilian midfielder Anderson turned the match on its head.

Anderson equalised in the 53rd minute with a stinging first-time shot from 20 metres and completed West Ham's comeback in the 57th when he buried the ball into the top right corner from 13 metres to cap a lightning break by the visitors.

Fabianski had kept out a long-range effort by forward Stuart Armstrong at the other end and marshalled his defence superbly in the closing stages as the Saints threw men forward in search of an equaliser.

Reuters

PREVIEW

What time does it start?

Southampton vs West Ham kicks off at 7:45pm (GMT)

Where can I watch it?

The match will be shown live on Sky Sports Premier League from 7:30pm.

Player to watch…

Marko Arnautovic: Pellegrini hinted prior to Thursday's game that star striker Arnautovic could be in line for a return having missed the Hammers last three matches with injury. The Austrian has scored five goals in 13 matches this season, as well as contributing two assists.

Arnautovic has missed the Hammers’ last three matches with injury (Getty)

Form guide…

Southampton: LDLLWW

West Ham: LWWWWL

Odds…

Southampton to win: 6/5

West Ham to win: 12/5

Draw: 5/2

(Odds provided by 888 Sport)

Key Points

• Southampton XI: McCarthy; Valery, Bednarek, Vestergaard, Yoshida, Targett; Lemina, Romeu; Armstrong, Redmond; Ings.
• West Ham XI: Fabianski; Antonio, Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Rice, Obiang; Snodgrass, Diangana, Felipe Anderson; Lucas Perez.

[27 December 2018 19:45 · Jack Sear]

Southampton 0-0 West Ham

We're underway at St Mary's!

[27 December 2018 19:46 · Jack Sear]

1 min: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

An energetic start from the hosts, who press high and force West Ham into a couple of mistakes in their own half.

[27 December 2018 19:48 · Jack Sear]

2 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

An early chance for Southampton and a good one, too. Left-wing-back Matt Targett finds some space after surging forward. He lays it back to Redmond who hits it first time from outside the box, but it's a fairly straightforward save for Fabianski.

[27 December 2018 19:49 · Jack Sear]

3 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

Another good chance for the home side. This time it's Danny Ings, who does brilliantly to beat two defenders inside the West Ham box, before poking into the side netting from close range.

[27 December 2018 19:50 · Jack Sear]

5 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

West Ham are set up in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Robert Snodgrass behind Lucas Perez. Grady Diangana and Felipe Anderson will play either side.

[27 December 2018 19:51 · Jack Sear]

6 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

Saints captain Oriol Romeu stops Michail Antonio in his tracks with a crunching tackle inside Southampton's half.

[27 December 2018 19:52 · Jack Sear]

7 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

The away side have the first corner of the game after Antonio, who's playing at right-back tonight, forces Targett to clear.

The set piece drops to Anderson who fails to get a shot away.

[27 December 2018 19:54 · Jack Sear]

8 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

West Ham win another corner after Diangana's cross is deflected out, but it comes to nothing as Cresswell lashes over a loose ball from distance.

[27 December 2018 19:55 · Jack Sear]

10 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

Southampton launch an attack with wing-back Valery, who fires a pass towards Ings, but the striker fails to control inside the box and West Ham clear.

[27 December 2018 19:57 · Jack Sear]

12 mins: Southampton 0-0 West Ham

Brilliant work from Stuart Armstrong who robs Antonio of the ball deep inside West Ham's half. The former Celtic man pulls it back to Redmond, who is unable to get a shot away before West Ham clear.