Substitute Kai Havertz scored a late winner as Chelsea came from behind to record a dramatic victory over West Ham, who had a 90th-minute Maxwel Cornet equaliser ruled out.
The Hammers frustrated Chelsea in a first half that saw plenty of home possession but no shots on target for either side, and looked to have executed their gameplan to perfection when Michail Antonio scored from a rare attack after 62 minutes.
The forward bundled in from close range after Blues goalkeeper Edouard Mendy failed to deal with a corner, but the visitors’ lead was wiped out 14 minutes later.
Chelsea, on the back of a record summer of spending and with £70m arrival Wesley Fofana making his debut, had struggled to break down David Moyes’ side before Ben Chilwell snuck in to level from a tight angle shortly after coming off the bench.
It sparked a frantic finish, with Cornet almost winning it late on for the visitors, only to see his header come back off the post and the Blues immediately score themselves through a clinical Havertz header from Chilwell’s cross.
There was still time for more drama as Cornet pounced, but only after a foul on Mendy that was awarded once referee Andrew Madley consulted the pitchside monitor.
It gives Chelsea their third win of the season and lifts the Blues to fifth, while West Ham sit 18th.
Blues get down to business after record window
The most expensive transfer window from any British club in history is over and now the real business begins for Thomas Tuchel and his side, with the expectation on £255m-worth of new additions to deliver results.
Fofana was handed his debut after arriving from Leicester City for £70m in a side that also included statement signings Kalidou Koulibaly, Marc Cucurella and Raheem Sterling.
However, it needed two players bought in the previous two summers to spark Chelsea into life at Stamford Bridge after falling behind to a scrappy Antonio opener.
First Chilwell – jostling for that left-sided spot with Cucurella – showed his class with a smart touch and neat finish from a narrow angle to pull the hosts level with 14 minutes remaining, and it was the England international who then provided the cross for Havertz to put Tuchel’s side in front in the 88th minute.
That good work was almost wiped out when Cornet found the roof of the net after another mix-up in the Chelsea defence, and there were relieved faces in the Blues side when the verdict was a foul on goalkeeper Mendy in the build-up.
It was a dramatic ending to what, for an hour, had been a dull affair.
Christian Pulisic has been used sparingly this season, though his USA boss Gregg Berhalter has tipped the winger to “prove everyone wrong”, and he had the game’s first shot in the 27th minute that deflected wide for a Chelsea corner, though neither side managed to hit the target until almost the hour mark.
That was a delightful volley from Jarrod Bowen that forced Mendy into a save, and from the resulting corner came the goal – Mendy failed to deal with a flick-on, Declan Rice knocked it back across goal and Antonio nudged in from close range.
Tuchel was aggrieved, feeling there was a foul on his goalkeeper, but he was happy with the resilience his side showed, and the quality Chelsea could bring off the bench to turn the encounter in their favour is a sign of the strength in depth the lavishly assembled Blues now possess.
Moyes furious at ‘scandalous decision’
It has taken a while for West Ham to get going this season but a win at Aston Villa and a well-earned point against Tottenham have given Moyes’ side some belief, and the visitors will feel they should also have taken something from Stamford Bridge.
A disciplined display kept Chelsea at bay for the most part and the Hammers were clinical from their own rare attacks, though had Cornet turned his late header inside the post rather than against it they would likely be leaving with three points.
It was a Cornet strike that did find the net that left Moyes furious, though, with Bowen adjudged to have caught goalkeeper Mendy before the ball fell to his team-mate.
“It is a scandalous decision,” said Moyes. “The referee gave it and I don’t know who sent him from VAR, but I always thought he would say it is a goal once he went to the screen.
“I have seen it from all angles and find it incredibly difficult to see how that is chalked off. I don’t know who in VAR sent him there.”
Player of the match
HavertzKai Havertz
Chelsea
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Squad number29Player nameHavertzAverage rating
8.35
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Squad number21Player nameChilwellAverage rating
7.31
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Squad number6Player nameThiago Silva
Average rating6.13
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Squad number24Player nameJames
Average rating6.12
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Squad number8Player nameKovacic
Average rating5.63
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Squad number19Player nameMount
Average rating5.63
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Squad number18Player nameBroja
Average rating5.61
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Squad number23Player nameGallagher
Average rating5.50
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Squad number26Player nameKoulibaly
Average rating5.49
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Squad number32Player nameCucurella
Average rating5.47
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Squad number12Player nameLoftus-Cheek
Average rating5.36
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Squad number17Player nameSterling
Average rating5.30
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Squad number33Player nameFofana
Average rating5.09
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Squad number16Player nameMendy
Average rating4.98
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Squad number5Player nameJorginho
Average rating4.82
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Squad number10Player namePulisic
Average rating4.67
West Ham United
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Squad number41Player nameRice
Average rating7.12
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Squad number11Player nameLucas Paquetá
Average rating7.12
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Squad number14Player nameCornet
Average rating7.07
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Squad number9Player nameAntonio
Average rating7.04
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Squad number28Player nameSoucek
Average rating6.72
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Squad number20Player nameBowen
Average rating6.68
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Squad number24Player nameKehrer
Average rating6.64
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Squad number22Player nameBenrahma
Average rating6.63
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Squad number8Player nameFornals
Average rating6.62
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Squad number33Player nameEmerson
Average rating6.59
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Squad number5Player nameCoufal
Average rating6.55
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Squad number4Player nameZouma
Average rating6.52
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Squad number1Player nameFabianski
Average rating6.45
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Squad number21Player nameOgbonna
Average rating6.05
Line-ups
Chelsea
Formation 3-1-4-2
- 16Mendy
- 33Fofana
- 6Thiago Silva
- 26Koulibaly
- 12Loftus-CheekBooked at 9minsSubstituted forJorginhoat 83′minutes
- 24JamesBooked at 54mins
- 23GallagherSubstituted forBrojaat 60′minutes
- 8KovacicSubstituted forHavertzat 72′minutesBooked at 90mins
- 32CucurellaBooked at 35minsSubstituted forChilwellat 72′minutes
- 10PulisicSubstituted forMountat 60′minutes
- 17Sterling
Substitutes
- 1Arrizabalaga
- 5Jorginho
- 14Chalobah
- 18Broja
- 19Mount
- 21Chilwell
- 22Ziyech
- 28Azpilicueta
- 29Havertz
West Ham
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1Fabianski
- 5Coufal
- 24KehrerBooked at 90mins
- 4Zouma
- 33Emerson
- 41Rice
- 28Soucek
- 20Bowen
- 11Tolentino Coelho de LimaSubstituted forOgbonnaat 83′minutes
- 8FornalsSubstituted forCornetat 86′minutes
- 9AntonioBooked at 54minsSubstituted forBenrahmaat 74′minutes
Substitutes
- 10Lanzini
- 12Downes
- 13Areola
- 14Cornet
- 21Ogbonna
- 22Benrahma
- 32Coventry
- 35Randolph
- Referee:
- Andy Madley
- Attendance:
- 39,923
Match Stats
Live Text
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Match ends, Chelsea 2, West Ham United 1.
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Second Half ends, Chelsea 2, West Ham United 1.
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Kai Havertz (Chelsea) is shown the yellow card.
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Armando Broja (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Emerson (West Ham United).
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Thilo Kehrer (West Ham United) is shown the yellow card.
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VAR Decision: No Goal Chelsea 2-1 West Ham United.
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Édouard Mendy (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United).
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GOAL OVERTURNED BY VAR: Maxwel Cornet (West Ham United) scores but the goal is ruled out after a VAR review.
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Goal! Chelsea 2, West Ham United 1. Kai Havertz (Chelsea) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Ben Chilwell.
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Maxwel Cornet (West Ham United) hits the right post with a header from the centre of the box. Assisted by Saïd Benrahma with a cross.
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Substitution, West Ham United. Maxwel Cornet replaces Pablo Fornals.
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Foul by Jorginho (Chelsea).
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Pablo Fornals (West Ham United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Substitution, Chelsea. Jorginho replaces Ruben Loftus-Cheek.
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Substitution, West Ham United. Angelo Ogbonna replaces Lucas Paquetá.
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Ben Chilwell (Chelsea) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Vladimír Coufal (West Ham United).
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Foul by Kalidou Koulibaly (Chelsea).
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