Soucek’s late strike earns West Ham win as Lookman fluffs Fulham penalty
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This was a good game until the 90th minute and an exceptional one thereafter. Goalless going into four minutes of added time, West Ham had time to score a well worked goal, concede a poor penalty and then watch as Ademola Lookman saw a truly awful penalty saved to blow Fulham’s chance of a point with the last kick of the match.
West Ham move up to 11th with the win, courtesy of Tomas Soucek’s slammed sidefoot finish from a Said Benrahma cutback. The new Hammers signing, making his home debut, then nipped at the toe of Tom Cairney in the box with just seconds remaining of the game. Lookman stepped up to take and chipped a Panenka so badly that it barely had enough power to reach the waiting arms of Lukasz Fabianski.
West Ham started the match the better and should have been up within the first 10 minutes, probably by more than one goal.
There was a double chance in the fourth minute after Jarrod Bowen slammed into a tackle with Antonee Robinson, won the ball and burst beyond Fulham’s advanced defensive line. His cutback from the byline came to Arthur Masuaku and the Frenchman drove a shot goalwards from 10 yards out but drew a strong save from Alphonse Areola. The rebound came out to Aaron Cresswell who shot powerfully again, and on target again, but Fulham’s goalkeeper stood up to the task once more too.
Two minutes later came another double chance. This time it was Bowen on the end of the delivery, from a Cresswell corner. The cross was aimed at the penalty spot and Aleksandar Mitrovic cleared his lines, but only as far as the edge of the box. Bowen was waiting to strike the ball on the volley and it positively hummed through the air, back off Mitrovic’s head and on to Areola’s crossbar and behind.
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From the next Cresswell delivery, Sébastien Haller showed good movement to get across to the front post but less impressive execution: his header, which should at least have been on target, bounced up and out off the bar.
So the hosts started well. Their power and intensity looked set to pose Fulham a constant problem. Except it did not work out like that for the rest of the half. Instead Fulham sprang to life, their left hand side leading the way, with Robinson supporting the mercurial Lookman in testing Bowen and his Czech teammate Vladimir Coufal going backwards.
After some half chances from set pieces Fulham carved a proper opening in the 24th minute, a prolonged spell of possession ending with Tom Cairney adding his presence down the left and bending a cross beyond the West Ham back three. Mitrovic was waiting at the back post and got the jump on his man, but with time to direct his header the Serb – usually so reliable in the air – was only able to direct the ball beyond Lukasz Fabianski’s right hand post.
The start of the second half mirrored that of the first. Again West Ham should have scored. First Cresswell saw a superb free-kick pick up the faintest of touches from Areola on the way to striking the bar.
Then, in the 52nd minute, Bowen was positioned on the edge of the box to drive another left-footed volley towards goal from a Cresswell corner. Struck almost as well as the first, this effort took a deflection and with Areola on his knees the goal was gaping. But Bowen was left to tug at his hair as he watched the ball spin wide.
Just like the first half the West Ham dominance didn’t hold. Again Fulham pushed their way back into the match, their sprightly play sometimes seeming too quick for the six footers in the home side. With the visitors looking increasingly dangerous, albeit without creating any more clear opportunities, David Moyes chose to refresh his attacking options. Said Benrahma and Manuel Lanzini came on for Bowen and Pablo Fornals.