There are no certainties in Premier League football but Albion getting the better of West Ham is not far off.
Albion haven’t lost in 12 meetings with the Hammers and this one-sided victory was as comfortable as the scoreline suggests, as Roberto De Zerbi’s men returned to winning ways after two games without a victory in the league and with no little swagger, claiming their biggest home win of the season in the process.
It was a polished performance, particularly in the second half, embellished by Alexis Mac Allister’s sixth goal of the season from an 11th-minute penalty and efforts by Joel Veltman, Kaoru Mitoma and Danny Welbeck after the break.
There could have been more goals while Jason Steele made two crucial saves at 1-0 on what was a relatively quiet first Premier League start since November 2021.
De Zerbi watched from the directors’ box and he would have been pleased with Albion’s positive start. A move involving Mitoma and Solly March ended with Evan Ferguson’s low drive forcing Alphonse Areola into a comfortable low save.
West Ham, employing a 4-1-4-1 formation were content to let Albion have the ball but their reluctance to engage nearly cost them in the 11th minute when March picked his way past two defenders and forced Areola to beat away his angled, close-range shot.
Albion had to make an early change when Lamptey limped off to be replaced by Joel Veltman but they had the lead on 18 minutes. Mitoma was pushed by Jarrod Bowen as he darted into the box and Mac Allister slammed the penalty into the roof of the net.
Steele twice came to Albion’s rescue six minutes later. West Ham broke at pace and although Pervis Estupinan did superbly to thwart Said Benrahma the ball fell to Bowen but Steele stood up and blocked his shot with his right knee. West Ham recycled possession but Steele saved again, this time denying Tomas Soucek at his near post.
Both sides were guilty of giving possession away cheaply at times but Albion carried the greater attacking threat in the first half and it needed Ben Johnson to make an excellent clearance at the far post to prevent Mitoma from converting March’s deep cross from the right.
Mac Allister would have been disappointed not to score twice in two minutes just after the break as Albion took control in the second half.
More crisp build-up, starting with Moises Caicedo deep in our half, ended with the Argentinian taking Mitoma’s pass and working space for a shot from just inside the box which failed to test Areola. Moments later Areola blocked his instinctive close-range flick after more dancing feet by March.
But from the corner the second goal did arrive. Pascal Gross’s corner was flicked on by Mac Allister and Veltman, unmarked two yards out, chested the ball nonchalantly into the bottom corner for his first goal of the season.
Ferguson was next to threaten with a crisply-struck first-time shot which Areola pushed away before he was denied by a superb tackle from Emerson when it looked like he would convert Mitoma’s low ball across the face of goal. March was next to threaten but after doing well to create some space he couldn’t keep his volley down.
But a third goal looked inevitable and it came on 70 minutes. Veltman won the ball back from Areola’s clearance and Albion were away. Ferguson flicked his pass into the path of Gross in space on the right and his low cross was steered in at the far post by Mitoma.
Substitute Julio Enciso was denied a goal with virtually his first touch when Areola touched his curling effort onto the bar but with a minute to go fellow sub Welbeck got the fourth when he worked some space on the edge of the box and beat Areola with a low drive inside the far post.
If Albion had won by five or six the visitors could not have complained on another afternoon to remember at the Amex.
Albion: Steele, Lamptey (Veltman 15), Webster, Dunk, Estupinan (Welbeck 76), March (Buonanotte 75), Gross, Caicedo, Mitoma (Enciso 84), Mac Allister, Ferguson (Sarmiento 84).
Unused subs: Sanchez, Undav, Gilmour, van Hecke.
Referee: Stuart Attwell
Attendance: 31,523