Emerson effort helps West Ham draw more positives in derby

Just like last Saturday at Newcastle United, where David Moyes men had to battle back from an early setback, the Scot again saw his side concede early – this time to João Felix – before finding the confidence to dig deep and level with an Emerson Palmieri equaliser.

On-loan from Atletico Madrid, Felix had lasted just 58 minutes of his Chelsea debut before seeing red, however returning from suspension at London Stadium, the 28-times capped Portuguese international took just over a quarter of an hour to give the visitors the lead.

But the Hammers fought back to level through former Chelsea defender Emerson on 28 minutes and, but for a Video Assistant Referee review that ruled out his effort for offside, substitute Tomáš Souček might even have snatched a dramatic late winner.

Last Saturday’s morale-boosting draw at St James’s Park had seen the Hammers kick-off in 17th spot – eight places and 11 points below Chelsea – and following that Tyneside stalemate, Moyes fielded an unchanged side, albeit he could only name eight players on the home bench.

And with just a dozen minutes on the clock, the West Ham dug-out become yet more depleted when Lucas Paquetá was replaced by Souček, having landed awkwardly on his shoulder after being tripped by full debutant Noni Madueke before then suffering a knock in a subsequent challenge.

Certainly, it had been an uncomfortable start for both the battered Brazilian and his manager, who had looked on nervously as Reece James curled an early, 20-yard free-kick into Łukasz Fabiański’s gloves before – in an early warning to the West Ham defence – the breaking Felix had an effort ruled out for offside, too.

After sharing a goalless draw against Fulham last Friday evening, Chelsea had made a trio of changes as they headed across the capital without a win in seven successive awaydays – their worse sequence in a dozen years – Felix, Madueke and Ruben Loftus-Cheek each coming in for substitutes Conor Gallagher, Hakim Ziyech and Mason Mount.

With West Ham having barely got the ball out of their own half during the opening quarter of an hour, it was no great surprise to see the Blues take the lead on 16 minutes, when Mykhailo Mudryk’s slide into Jarrod Bowen on the right touchline went unpunished.

Referee Craig Pawson leniently allowed play to continue, leaving Marc Cucurella to pick out Enzo Fernández and the Premier League’s costliest-ever player duly curled the ball towards the far post, where Felix left his markers standing to send a six-yard, half-volley past the flat-footed Fabiański.

Indeed, only a marginal offside flag prevented Kai Havertz from doubling Chelsea’s lead five minutes later and, curiously, that let-off proved the catalyst for a home revival as Bowen’s low right-wing cross was back-heeled into the ribcage of the stooping Kepa Arrizabalaga by Michail Antonio before Thilo Kehrer nodded the first corner of the afternoon inches wide.

At last, the Hammers were getting the ball up to the opposite end of the pitch and, sure enough, on 28 minutes, Vladimír Coufal’s right-wing centre was backheaded across goal by Bowen, leaving the alert Emerson to ghost in at the far post and sidefoot a tightly-angled six-yarder beyond Arrizabalaga.

Certainly, the 28-times capped Italian international could not have picked a better moment to net for the second time in Claret and Blue and, although he did not go over the top with the celebrations against his former club, the relieved Hammers fans willingly took on that task on with relish.

Shortly afterwards, Nayef Aguerd might even have turned up the volume yet higher, however he headed another Hammers corner wide but in the end, it was the flying Fabiański who ensured that both sides went in all-square at the break when he turned away Felix’s curling 20-yarder.

Just after the restart, former Chelsea academy starlet Declan Rice drilled a low 20-yarder just a foot or so wide and, after the consequently-cautioned Coufal brought down the marauding Mudryk on the edge of the Hammers area, James’ awkward inswinging free-kick was glanced beyond the far post by the leaping Antonio helping out the home defence.

Benoît Badiashile was then booked for dragging down the accelerating Antonio in the Hammers’ striker’s final act of the afternoon as both managers then shuffled their respective packs for the contest’s closing quarter.

Antonio and the subdued Saïd Benrahma made way for Danny Ings and Flynn Downes while Mount, Ziyech and Ben Chilwell came on for Madueke, Mudryk and Cucurella and, after Havertz had sent a near-post, bullet-header a whisker wide, Gallagher replaced Loftus-Cheek.

After Fernández then scuffed wide from 20 yards with a shot that looked nothing like £105 million-worth, Aguerd limped away as Ben Johnson stepped from the bench and, with the Hammers substitute still finding his feet on the Stratford turf, he surely thought that his arrival had been a lucky omen given Souček bundled home after Arrizabalaga had only parried Rice’s close-range shot.

But that VAR review deemed that the Hammers skipper was offside when Emerson had floated his free-kick towards the penalty spot and home cheers quickly turned to jeers, while the relieved Blues fans celebrated their late-reprieve and both sides were forced to settle for another draw.

West Ham United: Fabiański, Ogbonna, Kehrer (Johnson 80), Aguerd, Rice, Paquetá (Souček 14), Coufal, Emerson, Bowen, Benrahma (Downes 66), Antonio (Ings 66). Unused subs: Hegyi, Anang, Fornals, Lanzini.

Chelsea: Arrizabalaga, James, Cucurella (Chilwell 66), Silva, Badiashile, Fernández, Loftus-Cheek (Gallagher 78), Felix, Madueke (Mount 66), Mudryk (Ziyech 66), Havertz. Unused subs: Bettinelli, Chalobah, Fofana, Azpilicueta, Chukwuemeka.

Booked: Coufal (55), Badiashile (66).

Referee: Craig Pawson.