West Ham put big dent in Man City's title hopes with hard-earned point | OneFootball

Manchester City's title bid took a big blow as they left the London Stadium frustrated by a never-say-die West Ham United.

With Arsenal leaving it late at home to Everton, the Citizens knew that only three points would realistically keep their title hopes alive and they had to do it with Pep Guardiola watching on from the stands with Pepijn Lijnders deputising in the dugout.

The visitors dominated possession as usual with the Hammers struggling to get out of their own third, let alone their own half at times.

The pressure eventually told with just over half an hour gone when Omar Marmoush played in Bernardo Silva. It looked like the Portuguese playmaker was looking to chip the ball to the back post but instead managed to loop the ball over Mads Hermansen.

If he meant it, it was a goal of real genius but judging by his reaction after the ball hit the net, he probably didn't – even if he claims otherwise later.

Despite that setback, West Ham responded well and managed to go forward themselves. Just four minutes later, they'd equalised when Jarrod Bowen sent in a corner that Kostas Mavropanos fired in off the underside of the bar and over the line before it bounced out.

The Hammers defence stayed strong until half-time and well into the second half with City bringing on Jérémy Doku and Rayan Cherki on the hour mark to try and add some new dimension to their predictable attack.

With that still not doing the trick, on the 75 minute mark, Phil Foden and Tijjani Reijnders came on with Cherki forcing Hermansen into a good save shortly afterwards. The Dane needed to make a finger-tip stop to keep out Cherki's freekick delivery that would have been going in had the goalkeeper not tipped it onto the bar.

As the clock ticked down a mix of heroic defending, Mavropanos in particular putting his body on the line, and some wasted opportunities meant that City once again lost ground on Arsenal.

West Ham deserve full credit though, with this kind of performance there should be no worry about relegation under Nuno Espírito Santo.

Incidents: The story of the match

1':

The match begins

22':

Missed opportunity. Omar Marmoush from Manchester City attempted a right-footed shot from outside the penalty area following a free kick, but it went wide to the left.

Manchester City takes the lead against West Ham United, making it 1-0. Bernardo Silva finds the back of the net with a left-footed shot from a challenging angle on the left side.

31':

GOAL Manchester City: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) scores!

Bernardo Silva scores goal number 2 in the competition (30 matches) Bernardo Silva scores goal number 76 for his team (447 matches)

It's now West Ham United 1, Manchester City 1. Konstantinos Mavropanos scores with a header from close range, directing it into the top left corner. The assist comes from Jarrod Bowen, who delivered a precise cross following a corner kick.

35':

GOAL West Ham: Kostas Mavropanos (West Ham) scores!

Kostas Mavropanos scores goal number 1 in the competition (23 matches)

45':

Missed opportunity. Antoine Semenyo from Manchester City attempted a left-footed shot from the center of the penalty area.

45':

Missed opportunity! Antoine Semenyo of Manchester City took a left-footed shot from the center of the box, but it went just wide to the left. The assist came from Erling Haaland.

45 +2':

Missed opportunity! Matheus Nunes from Manchester City takes a right-footed shot from outside the penalty area, but it goes over the bar and to the left. Rodri provided the assist.

48':

Missed opportunity! Omar Marmoush from Manchester City took a right-footed shot from the right side of the penalty area but sent it wide to the left. Bernardo Silva provided the assist.

66':

Opportunity wasted. Jérémy Doku from Manchester City attempted a right-footed shot from outside the penalty area.

68':

Missed opportunity. Marc Guéhi of Manchester City had a header from inside the six-yard box but sent it wide to the left. The assist came from Bernardo Silva, who delivered a cross following a corner kick.

90 +5':

Opportunity wasted! Marc Guéhi of Manchester City attempted a header from the center of the box but failed to convert. The chance was set up by Tijjani Reijnders, who delivered a cross following a corner kick.

90 +5':

Opportunity wasted. Marc Guéhi of Manchester City attempted a right-footed shot from inside the six-yard box, but it went high and wide to the right after a corner kick.

998':

The referee whistles for the end of the match