West Ham vs Chelsea LIVE: Tomas Soucek handball missed by VAR in controversial finish
The points were shared at the London Stadium
Chelsea were held to a 1-1 draw at West Ham United on Saturday as Joao Felix’s opener was cancelled out by ex-Blues defender Emerson Palmieri, leaving Graham Potter’s expensively assembled team still a long way from a top-four spot.
Felix returned to the team after the on-loan Portuguese winger was sent off in his debut for Chelsea last month and in the 16th minute he side-footed home a pinpoint cross by British record signing Enzo Fernandez, one of the many new faces at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea sought to extend their lead but it was their former wing-back Emerson who equalised in the 28th minute when he arrived unmarked at the far post to meet a headed flick-on by Jarrod Bowen and shoot past Kepa Arrizabalaga.
In a second half of few chances, Tomas Soucek put the ball in the back of the net in the 82nd minute but Declan Rice, who headed the ball on to the Czech, was ruled offside by VAR.
A few minutes later, Chelsea appealed in vain for a penalty, claiming substitute Conor Gallagher’s shot was stopped by Soucek’s hand.
The draw meant Chelsea have now won only one of their last seven league games - and they have not won away since October. They stayed ninth in the table, nine points behind fourth-placed Newcastle who have played a game less.
West Ham climbed up to 15th but are only two points ahead of Everton, the highest placed team in the relegation spots.
West Ham 0-0 Chelsea
4 min: Good play by Chelsea down the right side involving Felix, and Loftus-Cheek carries the ball into the box. He tries to cut it back for Havertz arriving in the middle, but it’s easy enough for Fabianski to collect.
West Ham 0-0 Chelsea
2 min: Chelsea are decked out in a nice little gold number, while West Ham are in their traditional claret and blue. Mudryk makes a positive dart in from the left and wins a free-kick around 30 yards from goal, which Reece James floats tamely at Fabianski.
Kick-off! West Ham 0-0 Chelsea
We’re under way at the London Stadium.
Potter on picking Loftus-Cheek over Mount in midfield
Graham Potter: “Ruben Loftus-Cheek provides a little bit of balance for the attacking players. Against West Ham you have to be strong in the boxes, defend set-pieces, so he helps us in that area as well.”
Gianfranco Zola: ‘It’s very difficult’ managing a bloated squad
“I’ve been there at Watford when the club bought 14 new players in the last week of the window, it was crazy,” says Zola, in reference to Graham Potter’s huge range of options to choose from.
Rio Ferdinand adds: “Graham Potter has never dealt with these egos before. That is a massive job, it’s very different to what he’s been used to.”
West Ham vs Chelsea
Jarrod Bowen warms up before kick-off:
West Ham vs Chelsea: TV info
It will be shown live on BT Sport 1, with coverage starting from 11:30am. BT Sport customers can also stream the match live on the BT Sport website and mobile app.
West Ham vs Chelsea
This is a London derby of two struggling sides.
The Hammers come into the game 17th in the table only one point clear of the relegation zone, while Graham Potter’s Blues are ninth and a gaping 10 points from the Champions League positions. Both sides have only one win from their past five league games and are desperate to find their best form against their rivals across the city.
Declan Rice and Enzo Fernandez: Future teammates or midfield rivals?
Sports reporter Jamie Braidwood has taken a closer look at the engine room today where Declan Rice faces off against Enzo Fernandez:
The timing from David Moyes was conspicuous. Enzo Fernandez, the new holder of the British transfer record, had just made his Chelsea debut when Moyes jumped at the chance to praise a player of his own. He was glowing about the performance of Declan Rice in West Ham’s battling 1-1 draw at Newcastle, and chose to deliver a clear statement on how Chelsea’s £106m signing of Fernandez had altered the transfer market – as well as the value of his captain. “Undoubtedly he’ll be a British transfer record if he ever leaves West Ham,” Moyes said. “I think Dec will be blowing that out of the water, that’s for sure, when it comes around.”
For as much as West Ham and Moyes hope it’s not, “when it comes around” is increasingly certain to be this summer, when Rice will enter the final year of his contract. It is a crucial time for West Ham, given it is unlikely that Rice will extend his nine-year association with the club beyond his current deal. If Moyes’s assertion is correct and the England international commands a £106m-plus fee this summer, West Ham would risk losing him for nothing if they do not sell. But with Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United all gathering, the ball is in West Ham’s court to drive up the price as much as they can – a point Moyes made sure to make.
And if Moyes is correct, when West Ham host Chelsea at the London Stadium on Saturday, the most expensive signing in Premier League history will face the player who could be its next record-breaking transfer. It will be the first meeting of Rice and Fernandez but depending on what unfolds in the coming months, it could be the first of many, or the last at club level for some time. With Chelsea and Arsenal set to be the leading contenders for Rice this summer, they may start next season as teammates, or as midfield rivals.
Read more:
Declan Rice and Enzo Fernandez: Future teammates or midfield rivals?
With Chelsea and Arsenal gathering around the West Ham captain, Saturday’s meeting of Rice and Fernandez could be a clash of the two most expensive players in Premier League history – but will it be the first of many, or the last?
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