West Ham United 2-0 Watford: Arnautovic And Hernandez Hand Hammers A Crucial Win
West Ham United coasted to a 2-0 victory against Watford and David Moyes will be quite happy with the way his team performed. A hapless Hornets side were forced to deal with quite a solid home unit and Marko Arnautovic’s return clearly provided West Ham with a much-needed boost. This win, however, brings the Hammers on par with Watford in terms of points but they continue to be behind them due to goal difference.
That said, this win will undoubtedly be an encouraging sign for the Hammers and they will only be looking to go forward from here. With that in mind, let’s take a look at how they fared against Watford.
West Ham United Player Ratings
Adrian – 7/10
Adrian made a couple of decent saves and kept Gerard Deulofeu’s free-kick at bay as well. He will be happy to have maintained a clean sheet in this one.
Pablo Zabaleta – 8.5/10
Zabaleta had the lethal Richarlison in his back pocket throughout the game. He put in a very strong display and kept most of Watford’s attackers away.
James Collins – 7/10
Even when he got himself into a sticky situation or two, Ogbonna rescued him and besides some minor errors, Collins was quite solid at the back.
Angelo Ogbonna – 10/10
Ogbonna single-handedly battled Troy Deeney and frustrated the towering striker by cutting into most of his attacking runs. He made some important interceptions as well and was West Ham’s best player on the field.
Aaron Cresswell – 7.5/10
Cresswell has shown remarkable improvement in the last couple of weeks and he did brilliantly today, despite the pressure from Gerard Deulofeu.
Michail Antonio – 7/10
He did quite well at left wing-back and made some blistering runs on the left-hand side. Antonio played a crucial role in the first goal but his passes got a bit sloppy in the second half. That said, he did play out of position and so we can overlook that.
Mark Noble – 7.5/10
Noble put in a no-nonsense display in the middle of the park and did a decent job.
Cheikhou Kouyate – 6.5/10
Kouyate was quite solid in the first-half but he is still far from his best. Regardless, it was a good display from the midfielder.
Joao Mario – 6.5/10
Mario was quiet throughout the game and he looked rather mellowed down in this one. However, he did make some important passes to keep things going.
Marko Arnautovic – 9.5/10
His performance made it clear as to why the Hammers missed him so much. He shook off all his rustiness despite returning from an injury and was an absolute menace. The opponent defenders looked harried as Arnautovic whizzed back and forth past them.
Javier Hernandez – 9/10
Hernandez seemed to be in a shell initially but he broke forward with his brilliant goal and from then on, he was quite a lively force to be reckoned with.
Subs
Sam Byram – 6/10
He hardly got enough time on the ball.
Declan Rice – N/A
Came on too late to make an impact defensively.
Jordan Hugill – N/A
The player came in about a minute or two before the final whistle and could not do much.