Jackson Hits Brace As Chelsea Beat West Ham 3-0

With Areola trapped in no man’s land, Jackson skillfully finished with the outside of the boot, leaving Max Kilman in the dust.

Chelsea effectively wrapped up the points two minutes after half-time as Jackson turned provider.

A swift counterattack culminated in the Senegal striker outfoxing the retreating West Ham defence with a clever reverse pass, and Cole Palmer fired emphatically beyond Areola.

West Ham had earlier felt aggrieved when a strong penalty appeal – checked by VAR – was turned down after Crysencio Summerville went to ground following a tussle with Wesley Fofana.

The most likely goal scorer for West Ham, Mohammed Kudus, had the ball in the net before halftime but was called for offside; after the break, Jarrod Bowen forced Robert Sanchez to make a nice save at his near post.

With this win, Chelsea is now just two points behind Manchester City as the Premier League leaders, while West Ham remains in the bottom half of the standings, three points above the relegation zone.

As Lopetegui has only recently taken over, it would be unjust to judge him too harshly considering that, in contrast to Moyes, he has been tasked with implementing an attacking strategy that is more possession-based.

Yet a third home defeat left the the Spaniard’s card marked with an unwanted piece of history – never have West Ham started a season with three consecutive home league defeats in their 129-year history.

Although the London Stadium’s defeats to Manchester City, Aston Villa, and Chelsea are undoubtedly not cause for concern, Lopetegui and his team still have a lot of work to do in the training area.