West Ham 3-2 Chelsea, Premier League: Statistical review and analysis

That sucked.

Overview

Chelsea were distinctly second best in every department from the first minute to the last. Faced by a resilient defence, the team struggled to create clear chances and were typically poor at set pieces.

Pulisic’s run won a penalty that was converted by Willian but West Ham had a goal ruled out from a set-piece before utilizing the same tactic to grab the equalizer.

Shambolic defending gifted West Ham a second goal before Willian’s free-kick levelled proceedings. Chelsea looked good for a 10-minute spell after the equalizer but struggled to create many chances bar one for Giroud.

As the wait for a third goal extended, Chelsea committed too many men forward and were made to pay the price for it by a classic counter-attacking goal from West Ham.

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Statistics

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Individual ratings

Frank Lampard

Lampard stuck with the same 4-3-3 system that had yielded great results but will perhaps be regretting his team selection. The two advanced midfielders are the most important players in this system and picking Kovačić and Barkley disrupted the team’s usual flow of play. It was no surprise that the fluency improved dramatically once Mount came on.

The usual set-piece woes continued and there seems no end in sight, at least until the end of this season. A part of the blame will have to be shouldered by Lampard, regardless of the personnel.

RATING: 6

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Kepa Arrizabalaga

This was the fourth game this season where opponents have scored from all their shots on target against Chelsea. His poor judgement in the build-up to West Ham’s first goal and his positioning for the third were reminders of mistakes we have seen all season.

There’s not a lot more to say, really.

RATING: 4.5

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Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images

César Azpilicueta

Azpilicueta tried his best to make things happen in the final third but with minimal help from his teammates, there is not much he could have done. His emphasis on crossing increased once Giroud was brought on but the accuracy left a lot to be desired.

RATING: 6

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Andreas Christensen

After a phenomenal performance against Manchester City, this was a reality check for Christensen. His judgement was frequently bad and he was consistently beaten in duels by Michail Antonio. Ball-watching did not help either.

RATING: 5

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Antonio Rüdiger

Perhaps the team’s worst performer of the night. Gave up the corner, rather unnecessarily, leading to West Ham’s first goal. His performance went downhill from there, with his defending for the third goal particularly poor. Showing Yarmolenko to his stronger left foot was a piece of defending he is not likely to want to rewatch.

RATING: 4

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Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images

Marcos Alonso

While it was not his best display, Alonso is unlikely to come out of from this game with too much of a reputation hit. Could have possibly had an assist from a good cut-back to Giroud, and contributed some nice passes in the final third. Ultimately, he had nothing to show for it.

RATING: 6.5

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N’Golo Kanté

This was shaping up to be a fantastic performance from Kante until his poor judgement for the third goal, trying to win the ball in the box instead of sitting deep. He did a good job stemming West Ham’s counters otherwise.

RATING: 7

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Ross Barkley

Given the chance to start after his cameo against Leicester, Barkley failed to capitalize. Player some nice passes but did not contribute anything of substance at the end of the day. His speed of decision-making needs work and he needs to start taking more risks if Lampard wants to beat deep blocks more comfortably.

RATING: 5.5

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Mateo Kovačić

Was played in an unfamiliar attacking position and it showed. Kovačić struggled to play penetrative passes and struggled to progress the ball quickly enough — reminiscent of his performances under Sarri last season. However, he can’t be blamed much considering his skillset is not suited to the role he was assigned.

RATING: 5.5

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Photo by Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images

Willian

Continued his great run of form, taking his goal contribution tally to 7 in the last 6 games. While this was not his best performance overall, he stood up when it mattered and made meaningful contributions. His farewell tour has been excellent so far.

RATING: 8

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Tammy Abraham

A pretty horrid performance overall. Struggled to make the right runs inside the box, could not bring his teammates into play and received the ball in harmless positions. Not his best day at the office.

RATING: 4.5

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Christian Pulisic

Pulisic is unlikely to be completely happy with this display despite winning the two fouls that led to Willian’s brace. His shooting radar was off and he was not at his best from a dribbling perspective except for the two fouls won. His passing in the final third needs some work as well, especially in terms of consistency and having a broader field of vision. Regardless, he was among our better performers.

RATING: 7

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Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images

Mason Mount

Changed the game coming off the bench. Interestingly, he occupied a deeper position than he usually does on the ball and tried to make things happen. Increased our speed in possession within a matter of minutes but could not land a telling blow, either in terms of passing or shooting.

RATING: 7

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Ruben Loftus-Cheek

A far more encouraging display when compared to the showing against Aston Villa. Loftus-Cheek seemed sharper and more willing to take risks. However, rustiness showed and his execution was not at the required level.

RATING: 6

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Olivier Giroud

Offered a better reference point for the attack than Tammy Abraham. Will feel he should have done better from Alonso’s pull back late in the second half, especially since it was on his stronger left foot.

RATING: 6

Photo by Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images