Key events
45+3 min A poor free-kick is headed clear by the nearest man to it.
45+2 min But have a look! West Ham move the ball down the right and a rash challenge from Cancelo on Bowen earns the former a caution and allows the latter to stick a ball into the box…
45 min There’ll be four added minutes.
45 min More City possession. This is excellent stuff from them, effectively excluding West Ham from the game in the knowledge that at some point they’ll create a goal. That said, though, they can play much better than this; it’ll take something very significant to prevent them from winning a third title on the spin.
44 min Marginally better again from West Ham, Fornals progressing down the left before crossing for City to clear.
43 min Something from West Ham, Lanzini sliding Bowen down the right, but just as it looks like he’s got some space, Ake comes over to dispossess, winning the goalkick too.
41 min This dayglo City kit is not unlike the one they wore when
Trevor from Eastenders
40 min We’ve barely seen Rice, Soucek, Bowen or Fornals so far. West Ham have defended the box reasonably well, but that’s about all they’ve done.
39 min “That sound you hear is five million people logging into their fantasy football account to trade out Harry Kane for Haaland,” reckons JR.
I don’t know – both will score loads of points, though I guess Kane gives you assists as well as goals.
39 min …which Gundogan slaps into the wall.
38 min City win a free-kick just outside the box, 25 yards out and just right of centre…
37 min On the penalty, City did really well to manufacture it – there’s not much space behind the West Ham centre-backs, so the run, change of pace and weight of pass had to be near-perfect, and they were.
GOAL! West Ham United 0-1 Manchester City (Haaland pen 36)
Haaland opens body, punches a lot left-footer to wards bottom left, and Areola dives in the opposite direction.
PENALTY MAN CITY!
We’re going to see this a lot. Gundogan slips a reverse-pass down the side, Haaland attacks the space, nicks it away from Areola, and wears the inevitable trip, hands through legs.
34 min Cancelo gets the ball in midfield and the 7 on his back suddenly looks more normal. I guess it makes more sense than 10 Gallas and 9 Boulharouz, but only marginally.
32 min Further to the Moyes point, you look at how Man United defended against Brighton, versus how West Ham are defending here, and the difference is astounding – especially in terms of focus and toughness.
32 min Antonio returns; he’s touch the ball six times in the first 30 minutes.
30 min Antonio is down after jumping for a header and landing awkwardly,, so the physio comes on.
29 min Grealish is looking decent here, again carrying the ball downfield before, this time, finding Cancelo, whose cross is cleared.
28 min Fabianski can’t continue, dragging himself off to be replaced by Alphonse Areola.
27 min More like it from City, Grealish drifting infield and finding Haaland, who touches off beautifully around the corner for Gundogan. He his the line and cuts back for De Bruyne, who slides into the net, but Haaland was fractionally offside from the initial pass.
26 min City are still having all of the ball, and given the temperature – it’s 32 degrees out there – West Ham might need all of their subs.
24 min “I see your point about Moyes and his sweet spot – as an Evertonian, I see it all too well,” returns Eric Peterson. “Ironically, though, I think it might have been a more relevant point in 2012 than in the present day. If we consider a table of ‘biggish clubs who need some organisation and heart’, right now, isn’t Manchester United in first position by a country mile? (Well, there’s Everton, isn’t there?)“
Sure, Moyes has stuff to offer. But we’ve not seen anything that suggests he’s the right bloke for so high-profile a job, nor that he’s got the skills and smarts to lead a team trying to be the best around.
22 min It’s time for drinks. West Ham will chzoz theirs in good heart, though Fabianski is limping.
20 min The first time I saw Foden play, for England at age-group level, I knew he was special, which isn’t me bragging about my eye for talent, I assure to – he just looked as natural on the ball then as he does now. But he does need a regular position – perhaps wide right will be it – and here he is now, swirling a cross towards the near post, to which Haaland can’t quite impart a flick.
19 min Foden drives a luscious switch out to Grealish, but his attempted cross, curled towards the back post, picks out Zouma, who heads clear.
18 min Fabianski plucks Foden’s corner out of the air. West Ham have started well.
17 min We’ve seen almost nothing of West Ham in attack, but we’ve not seen loads of City either.But here comes Foden, pulling down a crossfield pass on his big toe and feeding Cancelo, whose cross is deflected behind for a corner.
16 min West Ham shut down space so well. Their defensive spacing and discipline are both excellent.
14 min Cancelo drives forward and finds De Bruyne, who works space along the face of the box before screwing a shot wide of the far post.
13 min Coufal slides in on Grealish, cleans him out, and avoids a booking – I’ve no idea why.
12 min “I saw someone tweet ‘Is Haaland made of rock?’ writes Alix Sharkey. “Haaland with ‘a heavy touch that allows the defender to clear’, you say Daniel? Does he have any other kind of touch? I’ve yet to see him control a ball traveling at more than 10 mph. He’s going to be this season’s Lukaku, isn’t he?”
He’s a much better player than Lukaku, “for me”. He’s no artist, but his one-touch finishing tells us he’s got decent technical ability, I think.
10 min City have made 65 successful passes relative to eight for West Ham. That is both ridiculous and unsurprising – but West Ham are doing well to restrict final-third space.
9 min Grealish is seeing a fair bit of the ball out on the left, and he’ll need that – he’s a player who thrives on involvement, and going from being Villa’s key man to just another bloke at City must’ve affected him.
7 min City knock is about in midfield, then Gundogan finds Grealish, whose cross is cleared. It’s pretty hot in London today, so this might be a slower game than we’d ordinarily expect.
6 min Haaland lanks through the middle towards Zouma, but a heavy touch allows the defender to clear.
5 min “Hello from Pittsburgh!” begins Eric Peterson. “I’m imagining the Manchester United board in their luxury suite at Old Trafford, lingering over the debacle of today’s game and the disaster their club has become, and having their gaze drawn to the TVs and the sight of West Ham, led by their first post-Ferguson manager. I’m imagining them collectively realising, wait a second, this is what happens if you bring in a good manager and just give him what he needs to succeed rather than try to trip him up at every opportunity because he’s not doing it Your Way. I have an overly active imagination.”
I know what you mean, but Moyes doing brilliantly at West Ham doesn’t mean he was the right man for United. His sweet-spot is biggish clubs who need some organisation and heart.
3 min A near-post brute, under the bar, forces Ederson to flap as his defenders charge him, the Bowen thumps a volley that’s blocked; the ball goes left, Fornals whips in a cross, and Antonio heads over. Good start from West Ham, and there’a a delay because Ederson needs treatment, having been hammered by Haaland.
2 min Excellent from West Ham, winning the ball high and spreading left to Cresswell, whose cross for Antonio is a decent one and his header is blocked behind. Corner, and we know what West Ham can do with them…
1 min And away we go! For those of you watching in black and white, City are in dayglo yellow.
The players take the knee; we’ve yet to solve racism.
Before the game, Maxwell Cornet was introduced to the home fans, making the hammer sign, and goodness me what terrace-ditty potential he has.
Here come the teams!
Yeah, I’m not having this top.
More transfer news:
Everton are set to sign Conor Coady, agreement in principle with Wolves – gonna be a loan with buy clause also included as @_pauljoyce reports 🔵 #EFC
Personal terms almost agreed, Coady wants the move. Details discussed while Onana will be announced as new Everton player soon.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 7, 2022
This seems a very old-skool move – I bet, when asked, Lampard talks about “character”, “personality” and “leadership” rather than “being good at defending and not making errors”.
Looking at Grealish mucking about with the ball, my guess is that he’s been picked partly because Guardiola needs signing him to work, but also because his ability to improvise and pick holes might help against a team defending deep and properly, as West Ham will. Realistically, he and Riyad Mahrez are probably competing for one position, because I’d expect Foden to start the majority of games this season. Today, that looks like being on the right, and perhaps that’ll become his regular station; he needs one, because though he can play anywhere, consistency of selection will help him become as good as he should be.
Moyes tells Sky Scamacca isn’t fit enough to start and that Craig Dawson got injured against Lens – of course, he pronounces it Lense.
Guardiola says Haaland has settled well and is developing a connection with his new teammates.
Sky reckon it’s Ben Johnson at centre-back for West Ham. That makes some sense because he has recovery pace, but may suffer fro a lack of experience in the position.
There’s also pressure on Pablo Fornals, whose spot in the team is most at threat from the arrival of Maxwel Cornet. Fornals is a tricky mover, but so is Cornet – who’ll also bring dynamism and improvisational skill. He could prove a very canny addition.
Today, I imagine Moyes will want his wingers staying wide, trying to push Walker and Cancelo back. That’d allow Rice, Soucek and Lanzini to scrap with Rodri, Gundogan and De Bruyne for midfield control, and give West Ham a decent chance of turning that into a physical affair. There’s a lot of pressure, though, on Jarrod Bowen, who looks his side’s most likely creator – though they’ll always have their set-pieces.
I mentioned below that West Ham might play 4-4-2 in some games. That’s because, in Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek, Moyes has the legs in midfield to allow strikers and wingers – and perhaps explains the pursuit of Amadou Onana, who’s now going to Everton. I do, though, wonder if they need a bit more guile.
Brighton have beaten Man United 2-1 – welcome to “this league” Erik – while Brentford have come from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Leicester.
This is a really big season for Jack Grealish. He wouldn’t be the first to need a year to get used to Guardiola’s methods, but there’s a nagging doubt that he’s just not the right kind of player for the system, and that a quick, direct winger makes more sense – especially with Haaland making runs across the front post. That isn’t to say Grealish isn’t a great option to have, he is, but might make more sense as a sub and rotation player than a big-game staple.
A little bit of West Ham news:
West Ham are keen to improve his options in attacking midfield. They are willing to listen to offers for Saïd Benrahma and Nikola Vlasic. Nottingham Forest have shown an interest in Benrahma following their promotion from the Championship.
Elsewhere, mirth: Brighton lead 2-1 at Old Trafford with three minutes of the 90 left.
As for City, Haaland does indeed start, with Phil Foden and Jack Grealish chosen to flank him. More surprisingly, Nathan Aké starts in the middle of defence alongside Ruben Dias – John Stones is on the bench – and the midfield, the best in the league and perhaps the world, contains Ilkay Gundogan rather than Bernardo Silva, who’s linked with Barcelona and on the bench.
Moyes leaves his new signings on the bench – though I daresay we’ll see Gianluca Scamacca at some point. I wonder if, against less august opposition, we’ll see him play up alongside Michail Antonio in a 4-4-2, but for now it looks like a 4-5-1, a favourite Moyes tactic against better sides because it allows them to compete in midfield while retaining a threat in wide areas. Otherwise, West Ham are short of options in the centre of defence, so either Aaron Creswell or Vladimir Coufal will partner Kurt Zouma.
Teams!
West Ham United (a proactive 4-5-1): Fabianski; Johnson, Coufal, Zouma, Cresswell; Fornals, Soucek, Rice, Lanzini, Bowen; Antonio. Subs: Areola, Randolph, Scamacca, Vlasic, Downes, Benrahma, Coventry, Okoflex, Ashby.
Manchester City (a matter-of-principle 4-3-3): Ederson; Walker, Dias, Ake, Cancelo; Gundogan, Rodri, De Bruyne; Foden, Haaland, Grealish. Subs: Ortega, Phillips, Stones, Alvarez, Silva, Mahrez, Palmer, Lewis, Wilson-Esbrand.
Referee: Michael Oliver (Ashington)
Preamble
93, 100, 98, 99, 86, 93, 86, 99 – no, not a fiendishly difficult Mensa sequence, nor a pre-snap call from an NFL playbook, but the points obtained by the Premier League champions in the last six seasons. And of those tallies, only one is outside the top five recorded in the Premier-League era, just as only one – the 95 recorded by José Mourinho’s Chelsea in 2004-05 – makes the list from the entirety of the previous 24 years.
There are various reasons for this and – the world being the world – obscene wealth is foremost among them, delivering big squads replete with options and alternatives. But it’s also the case that, like Mourinho before them, Pep Guardiola and Jürgen Klopp have raised the bar – not necessarily of quality, though that can be argued too – of what it takes to win the title, marrying excellent recruitment with epochal force of personality and mentality.
In such context, it’s easy to see why both have invested in strikers: you can play nicely, with “co-ordinated pressing”, “choreographed movements” and all that, but football will forever remain a simple game with getting the round thing into the oblong thing its most important aspect. We saw that yesterday, when Darwin Nuñez, one of four Liverpool subs, came off the bench to save his team a point that – ridiculously – felt like a blow to their title ambitions. And we may well see it again today, because Erling Haaland, the world’s first lab-created goalmonster, will be starting in attack for Manchester City.
But there are far easier beginnings than West Ham away. David Moyes’ side are now established as one of the league’s best: physical, skilful, and an absolute brute to play against. Last season at the London Stadium, they beat Liverpool, almost did the same to City, and have plenty of scope to get better still.
Or, put another way, there are more friendly places to begin a bid for a record-equalling third consecutive title, and not many less so. This is going to be good.
Kick-off: 4.30pm BST
