Austin breaks deadlock for Southampton
LONDON: Charlie Austin scored his fifth goal in four appearances as Southampton condemned West Ham to a fourth successive Premier League defeat in London yesterday.
Austin broke the deadlock in a cagey encounter with a side-foot finish following Ryan Bertrand’s pull-back.
Dusan Tadic made it 2-0, collecting a pass from Austin and rounding Adrian before finding the empty net.
James Ward-Prowse’s low finish ensured a dire West Ham remain without a league win at their new London Stadium home.
The Hammers had only one shot on target and did not force Saints keeper Fraser Forster into a proper save throughout the game, which drew to a close in a near-deserted ground.
The facts are damning. The defeat means West Ham have lost five of their opening six games in a top-flight season for the first time in their history, and are 18th in the table having conceded 16 goals.
Southampton, meanwhile, have won four matches in a row in all competitions and are up to eighth.
The result and performance was far from the launch pad West Ham need in what has been a difficult season both on and off the pitch.
While defeats at Chelsea and Manchester City are perhaps unfair barometers by which to judge the Hammers, this loss following successive 4-2 defeats by Watford and West Brom marks a hugely disappointing run for a team who last season pushed for a topfour finish.
The situation has not been helped by the in-fighting between home fans during the Watford game, which contributed to an uneasy settling-in process at the London Stadium, which again was largely devoid of atmosphere.
This was another dire performance characterised by indecision and nervousness, as opposed to the adventurous and fluent attacking displays that saw them score 65 league goals last season.
Poor at both ends of the pitch, the Hammers have conceded two or more goals in 13 of the past 16 league matches.
They were no better in the middle, where Dimitri Payet, who excelled for both club and country last season and at Euro 2016, cut a very frustrated figure. He was not alone. – BBC