West Ham dig deep to unlock Anderlecht in UECL | OneFootball

West Ham stay perfect after they picked up three key points in a scrappy 1-0 win against Anderlecht on Thursday.

Scorers: Scamacca 79′

It was a tense 90 minutes in Belgium between these two sides and ultimately, it took one moment of magic for the deadlock to break.

West Ham were slightly better during the opening half with more possession and more shots but had trouble finding the target.

None of Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio or Saïd Benrahma could break down the Belgian’s deep-lying defence. The Algerian, however, was the most active of the front three.

As things stood 0-0, Anderlecht’s back line kept them in the game as the misfiring was the same for the hosts. Former Wolves striker Fabio Silva was the most active on the night but the 20-year-old’s lack of experience was showing.

It was not until West Ham made some substitutions that the game was able to turn in their favour. Declan Rice, in particular,  came on in midfield which seemed to add a pep to their step.

And it was the Englishman’s influence that set up the winning goal. Rice crossed the ball out wide, it eventually found Lucas Paquetá and substitute Gianluca Scamaca then pulled off some neat footwork in the box for 1-0.

But right at the death, their hard work was almost undone as Silva saw his point-blank effort saved by Alphonse Areola.

The result means West Ham stay top of Group B with the knockouts well in sight while Anderlecht are second.