by Amar Azam, at the Boleyn Ground

By the end of this hugely entertaining contest, one which rightly saw Sam Allardyce’s West Ham United run out worthy winners, it’s worth reminding ourselves that sometimes even the best-laid plans can go awry.

Premier League champions Manchester City came into town hoping to roll over their east London opponents with relative comfort.

What they received was a lesson in the merits of a high-intensity, ultra-physical approach to a match.

“It’s a massive, massive victory and a massive statement from us,” said a clearly pleased Allardyce. Few could deny him the joy. After all, this was a man who was nearly on his way out earlier in the year.

Goals from Morgan Amalfitano and Diafra Sakho were enough for the home side, who keep up their impressive start to the season.

The visitors responded through David Silva, a superb solo effort, but it was not enough to rescue anything from the match.

Midfield Alex Song typified the determination of this West Ham side. The former Arsenal player was pivotal to the Hammers’ attempts to destroy the swift passing style that we have become so accustomed to when watching Manuel Pellegrini’s men.

This defeat came following Manchester City’s draw against CSKA Moscow, a result that continued to prove how ill-prepared this team is for Champions League football. In the league, however, they carry on as they were last season, even if they are still chasing early season pace-setters Chelsea.

Pellegrini, as is his way, was calm in his analysis of the result and refused to blame his players.

“I don’t think it was a fault of our team for the performance in the first half, it was more about the intensity of West Ham and you must credit them for that,” said the City boss.

“I continue to trust this group of players. We are in a good position.”