West Ham climbed up to 12th in the Premier League standings with an emphatic 3-1 victory over Cardiff City at the London Stadium on Tuesday.
Cardiff had a golden chance to take the lead after Robert Snodgrass gifted the visitors a penalty but Lukasz Fabianski pulled off a fantastic save to deny Joe Ralls from the spot.
The Hammers stamped their authority in the second half and a double-strike from Lucas Perez within the space of five minutes settled all the nerves. Michail Antonio put the final nail in Cardiff’s coffin with a goal just after the hour mark to make it 3-0 for West Ham.
Manuel Pellegrini’s men continued their winning ways after a 3-0 drubbing of Newcastle last week while Cardiff City slipped to 16th in the standings as a result of the defeat.
Pulled off a fantastic save to deny Joe Ralls from the spot. Made a sharp save to keep out Victor Camarasa’s curling effort from a free-kick; a bit unlucky to concede the late goal and deserved a clean sheet.
Didn’t have much to do at the back and fared exceptionally well in an unfamiliar position; bombed forward with pace and got himself a well-deserved goal.
Didn’t have much to do at the back but missed a good chance with his head. Looked a bit scrappy with the ball at his feet.
Another solid outing for the Frenchman. Used his strength and aerial ability to cope with the threat of Callum Patterson.
Much improved defensive display from him. Made some good blocks and added impetus to the attack with his pace; set up Perez for the second goal.
Looked calm and comfortable in possession and showed some nice touches. Kept things tight in the midfield and allowed West Ham to dictate terms.
Didn’t do much in the first half and just ran around without much purpose. Imposed himself in the second half with some tackles.
Accurate with his deliveries from corners and bagged a couple of assists. Set up Perez with a delightful pass.
He has really taken his game to a new level in recent weeks. Started on the flanks but drifted to the central areas of the pitch at times and was spot on with his passing; caused all sorts of problems with his subtle movements and deft touches and ripped Cardiff apart.
Committed an unnecessary foul to hand concede a penalty. Showed plenty of energy in the final third but was taken off before halftime due to a hamstring injury.
Quite anonymous for the entire game and made no impact whatsoever; or to be more precise, his teammates didn’t use him much.
Replace Arnautovic at halftime and deserves all the credit for his clinical nature in front of goal.
Showed plenty of energy and purpose after coming on. Got in behind the defence a couple of times.