Asia Trophy
Manchester City 4-1 West Ham United 

Wednesday, 17th July 2019
by Staff Writer

West Ham are out of the Asia Trophy after falling to a heavy defeat against tournament favourites Manchester City.

The Hammers, minus their two big summer signings Pablo Fornals and Sebastien Haller can consider themselves rather hard done by however having been denied what appeared to be a fairly nailed-on penalty whilst leading 1-0.

Within five minutes City had turned the game around to lead 2-1 at the break, before adding two more after the break having introduced a number of first team stars to condemn United to defeat in their opening game of the Trophy.

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West Ham had got off to the perfect start when their invention and determination led to a penalty being awarded after Angelino handled the ball as Felipe Anderson drove into the penalty area.

Mark Noble, showing his usual calmness under pressure converted the spot kick, firing into Claudio Bravo's top left hand corner to give the Irons a deserved 25th minute lead.

Seven minutes later and referee Craig Pawson controversially refused to grant West Ham a second spot kick despite Ryan Fredericks, who enjoyed an excellent 45 minutes being clearly tripped.

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And with no VAR present during the tournament, the Hammers were forced to accept the errant official's decision.

That moment proved to be a major turning point in the game for having been denied the opportunity to double their advantage, the Hammers conceded an equaliser less than 60 seconds later as David Silva fired home from close range.

The game was turned completely on its head two minutes later when City were awarded a penalty after Angelo Ogbonna was deemd to have tripped an opponent - despite replays suggesting that the City man had left a leg trailing deliberately.

Lukas Nmecha made no mistake from the penalty spot and fired City into a 2-1 lead, an advantage they maintained until the half time interval.

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With both sides having made a host of changes at the break, City struck first in the second half to all but put the game beyond Manuel Pellegrini's team.

Shortly after Andriy Yarmolenko had seen a goalbound effort blocked Issa Diop conceded possession in the centre circle, allowing half time usbstitute Raheem Sterling to race through and finish calmly despite the attention of recent siging Roberto, who played the entire 90 minutes in goal.

And the favourites added another with 18 minutes of regulation time remaining when City took advantage of another lapse in concentration - this time from Carlos Sanchez - to make it 4-1, with Sterling applying the finishing touch once again.

The defeat, combined with Newcastle United's 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Wolves earlier in the day means the two Uniteds will meet on Saturday afternoon in the third-place play-off.

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Player Ratings

Roberto Jimenez Gago
Not the greatest way to start his West Ham spell. Conceded four, probably could've done a little better with the last.


Ryan Fredericks
Enjoyed a productive opening 45 minutes, making several forays down the wing. A little less efective once City brought their big players on at the break.


Ben Johnson
No notable error. Good to see Pellegrini taking a closer look at his in pre-season.


Issa Diop
One vital error that led to City's third goal, as he conceded possession cheaply and unnecessary. As you might expect from a youngster.


Angelo Ogbonna
Still looking a little clumsy and conceded the penalty that put Manchester City ahead.


Declan Rice
Not involved to any great degree but made several decent interceptions and kept it simple.


Mark Noble
It seems his legs still haven't gone - and he's looking like a leader in every game.


Felipe Anderson
A decent half from the Brazilian winger, who gave one or two City defenders nightmares in the opening stages.


Manuel Lanzini
A decent first half but like many others, faded after the break.


Jack Wilshere
Fit again and it showed - and long may that remain the case.


Michail Antonio
A real busy bee in the 45 minutes he played as the lone striker - a role to be filled by the club's record signing upon returning from China.



Substitutes

Carlos Sanchez
(Replaced Rice) A pretty horrible appearance, in which he was responsible for the final City goal and lucky not to concede a (fairly clear) penalty.


Robert Snodgrass
(Replaced Wilshere) Largely anonymous against the better City players.


Andriy Yarmolenko
(Replaced Rice) "I'll be like a new signing!" he (sort of) said last week. And he was a bit. Unlucky not to score with an effort that rattled the post.


Javier Hernandez
(Replaced Antonio) Not really involved although one 25-yard free kick nearly caught City unawares.


Pablo Zabaleta
(Replaced Fredericks) The old boy endured a bit of a torrid time against City's attack in the second half.


Aaron Cresswell
(Replace Johnson) No more effective that young Johnson, who he replaced.


Pedro Obiang
It may well be his final appearance in claret and blue, the lack of notable effort was evident. * Other subs used: Grady Diangana (Lanzini 62); Winston Reid (Ogbonna 68).



Match Facts

West Ham United: Roberto Jimenez Gago, Ryan Fredericks, Ben Johnson, Issa Diop, Angelo Ogbonna, Declan Rice, Mark Noble, Felipe Anderson, Manuel Lanzini, Jack Wilshere, Michail Antonio.

Goals: Mark Noble 25                  .

Booked: None.

Sent off: None.

Manchester City: Claudio Bravo, Danilo (Walker 63), Harwood-Bellis, Laporte (Stones 63), Angelino (Zinchenko 63), Rodri (Aleix Garcia 71), Silva (Sane 46), Doyle (Gundogan 63), Bernabe (De Bruyne 46), Poveda-Ocampo (Bernardo Silva 46), Nmecha (Sterling 46).

Subs not used: Grimshaw, Touaizi, Pozo, Diounkou, Knight.

Goals: Silva (33), Nmecha (pen 36), Sterling (59, 72).

Booked: .

Sent off: None.

Referee: Craig Pawson.

Attendance: 0.

Man of the Match: Ryan Fredericks.