Chelsea’s 3-0 Premier League win over West Ham was like a pre-season stroll at times but there were flashpoints.
Ahead of West Ham’s clash with Chelsea at the London Stadium Hammers News highlighted that it is one of the most underrated rivalries in English football.
But West Ham’s players didn’t get the memo as they turned in an insipid display to lose to Chelsea.
Julen Lopetegui got his tactics all wrong as the Hammers were beaten comfortably.
West Ham fans booed the team off, jeered the manager’s substitutions and thousands walked out en masse with 20 minutes to go.
One of the biggest frustration for West Ham fans was that their side barely laid a glove on Chelsea.
Hammers captain Jarrod Bowen admitted as much after the game.
Alvarez at centre of two clashes during West Ham vs Chelsea
Bowen said West Ham were never in it and also said he was disappointed his teammates did not get stuck in to Chelsea to let them know they were in for a tough afternoon.
It was anything but for Enzo Maresca’s Blues as they cantered to an easy win thanks to a brace from Nicolas Jackson and a Cole Palmer strike.
Had things been different with the Lucas Paqueta situation, Palmer might be at West Ham right now instead of Chelsea.
Irons vice-chair Karren Brady and former boss David Moyes have both admitted West Ham had a deal done to sign Palmer as part of Paqueta’s move to Man City.
But it collapsed due to the investigation into Paqueta’s alleged involvement in illegal betting on yellow cards.
One man who had an afternoon to forget was Edson Alvarez.
What Alvarez and Palmer said caught on camera
The Mexican lost his form and place at West Ham under Moyes at the end of last season.
And he had a nightmare against Chelsea after being bizarrely assigned to man mark one of the quickest players on the pitch in Jackson.
Alvarez’s lack of pace was brutally exposed for Chelsea’s first two goals and he wasn’t helped by teammates Aaron Wan-Bissaka or Konstantinos Mavropanos either.
The match became bitty with some silly fouls in the second half and some questionable dives too.
And it led to some running battles between the likes of Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez and Palmer.
Now what Alvarez and Palmer said in heated exchanges has been caught on camera during the West Ham defeat to Chelsea.
Alvarez fouled Palmer and the Chelsea man stayed sitting on the turf.
As Alvarez walked back past him, the Mexican glared at the England star.
Palmer’s response was clear for all to see on camera: “What you looking at you muppet.”
There was another flashpoint involving West Ham midfielder Alvarez and Chelsea’s Fernandez.
Alvarez had to be pulled away from the Argentine and was animatedly speaking to the Chelsea man while covering his mouth with his hand.
Hammers star Alvarez loses his cool during torrid performance
But Spanish broadcasters reported that Alvarez was allegedly threatening to get physical with Fernandez after the game after their run-in on the pitch.
Alongside video footage of the incident, Diario Ole state the altercation occurred after Chelsea’s third goal, when the West Ham man committed a foul that earned him a yellow card.
“Alvarez, frustrated by his team’s performance, did not hide his anger and addressed Fernández from a distance, covering his mouth to prevent the cameras from picking up his words,” the report states.
“I’ll wait for you…” said the West Ham player, in a tone that seemed to warn that the confrontation would continue off the field.
“Far from lowering the decibels, the situation intensified when both players approached each other, and Álvarez reiterated his threat with an even spicier phrase: “I’ll kill you outside, wherever you want.”
“However, the Argentine, true to his competitive and calm character, did not let the comment intimidate him. He responded with a defiant “Come on, come on,” accompanied by a few pats on the back , a reaction that, far from calming the situation, showed that he was not willing to back down in the face of provocation.”
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