West Ham United 2, Manchester City 1
LONDON // Manuel Pellegrini was clearly irritated. He never says much in his post-match media conferences, but this time he did not say much in an extremely irritated way.
Given he is usually so urbane, that felt significant.
He must know that the title is sliding out of City's grasp; if Chelsea win away to Manchester United on Sunday, they will be eight points clear of the champions – who remain, thanks to the stuttering starts of all the other major sides, their closest challengers.
This could be the weekend on which the Premier League title is decided.
Pellegrini said his side had not deserved to lose but, while it is true they created chances, so, too, did West Ham and, for the first hour or so of the game, City were distinctly second best.
There was a sense of lethargy about them, a doziness manifested in West Ham’s opening goal.
There may have been a suspicion of offside, but still, the way Enner Valencia was allowed to run into the box was bewildering, even before the mass collapse that left Morgan Amalfitano free at the back post to turn the ball over the line.
West Ham have tremendous pace in forward areas and that means that even when they are under pressure, they remain a threat.
The second goal may have come against the run of play, but it was hardly unexpected, Aaron Cresswell sending in a perfect cross for Diafra Sakho to score his sixth Premier League goal of the season with a downwards header.
A moment of individual brilliance from David Silva, darting in from the right before whipping the ball into the bottom corner, gave City hope, but that has been their way too often in recent times: waiting for individuals to produce brilliance rather than anything more coherent or consistent.
Silva’s quick feet, a surge from Yaya Toure or Sergio Aguero’s pace ripping an opponent apart. The potential is always there, but this season it seems not to have been properly harnessed.
West Ham, by contrast, had a clear game plan and two forwards in superlative form.
City’s biggest problem is the middle of midfield. Fernando and Fernandinho have barely been fit at the same time and that means Toure is always the player charged with providing forward drive from midfield.
He, though, increasingly plays in fits and starts, a general disaffection radiating from him.
Without proper cover, the back four has been exposed again and again, and Vincent Kompany keeps being drawn out of position, which in turn leads him to make rash challenges.
He was perhaps unfortunate to be cautioned when he was on Saturday, but he could easily have picked up yellow cards for two other fouls.
City, remarkably, have a point more this season after nine games than they did last, but last season they did not have a rampant Chelsea to deal with.
Already, with three quarters of the season still to play, it would take a remarkable swing for City to get back into the title race.
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