West Ham vs Chelsea LIVE: Premier League result and reaction after visitors cruise to victory

2 mins

Not a single starter or sub from today’s squad was involved the last time Chelsea won here, in 2021.

The away side have started fairly confidently though, knocking it around the back with plenty of composure.

KICK-OFF!

The home side get us underway at the London Stadium.

Not far from kick-off in east London, with both sides about to take their place in the tunnel.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca tells TNT that it “nice to be back” at West Ham, where he “spent almost two years” as assistant manager, “with some good players and good human beings.

“For sure the results are always important. The main thing is to see how the team progress and adapt. I think we’re going in the right direction.”

On Jadon Sancho starting, he says: “It was not simple [choice] because we have more players. But we decided on Jadon and hope it is the right decision.”

Chelsea could win their opening three away games of a Premier League season for the first time since 2017/18.

The Blues’ 1-0 win at Bournemouth last weekend ended a run of 20 consecutive away matches in all competitions without a clean sheet.

In 2024, only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have earned more points in the Premier League than Chelsea’s 42.

The Blues have been shown 16 yellow cards this season, more than any other side in the top flight. Eight of those came in their last game against Bournemouth. 

Christopher Nkunku has currently scored more goals for Chelsea (6) than he has made starts (5).

West Ham could begin a season with three straight home league defeats for the first time if they were to lose today. The Hammers have faced a league-high 73 shots across their opening four matches, and they have failed to keep a clean sheet in 11 home league games since a 0-0 draw versus Brighton in January.

Lopetegui’s side have won only two of their 12 Premier League home fixtures in 2024 (D6, L4), beating Brentford 4-2 and Luton 3-1.

The Hammers are the first club to play their opening five matches of a Premier League season in London since Charlton Athletic in 2006-07. Their first league game outside the capital isn’t until early November.

Michail Antonio could become the first player to reach 100 Premier League goal involvements for West Ham today – he currently has 67 goals and 32 assists.

These two sides have met a total of 122 times, with the first meeting taking place in 1923. Chelsea have won 55 matches, with West Ham winning 44 and 23 ending as draws.

Chelsea have won 30 of the 56 Premier League meetings between the two – they’ve only beaten Tottenham more often in the division (35 times).

The home team won both Premier League matches last season: 3-1 for West Ham at the London Stadium and 5-0 for Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Their men are in action this afternoon but Chelsea’s women can kick back and relax having got the job done, just about, at Kingsmeadow last night. Jamie Braidwood was there to watch the start of the Sonia Bompastor era.

Footballers are playing too many games and not enough is being done to protect them, according to Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca.

In the same week that Manchester City’s Rodri suggested fotballers could strike in response to fixture congestion and a lack of consultation from governing bodies, Maresca said that refusing to play “could be an idea” and hinted he believes players would be right to take action against the number of games they are being made to play.

Chelsea and City are due to take part in FIFA’s inaugural Club World Cup in the United States next summer, further limiting the amount of downtime players will get in between seasons following Euro 2024 and ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Asked whether he felt there were too many games in the current football calendar, Maresca said: “Yes, no doubt.

“In terms of games, it’s too much. I don’t think we protect players. We can say what we think and for me it’s completely wrong the amount of games that we have.

“The only ones that can do something are the players and we can help them. In the last two weeks some of the players have tried to explain what they think. I think it’s a good starting point.

“Some of them have said (they could strike). I think it could be an idea for them.”