It may not have been the ideal debut for Kalvin Phillips, but in the end it was a point well-earned for West Ham. Having gone behind to Dominic Solanke’s early opener, a goal which came thanks to a glaring error from their new arrival, James Ward-Prowse’s second-half penalty was enough to secure a hard-won draw.
As they emerged from the flurry of bubbles before kick-off, both sides set out to end a two-match winless run in the league. The visitors found themselves in a trickier spot after back-to-back defeats, while the hosts looked to shake off consecutive draws, though Bournemouth had at least barrelled through two rounds of the FA Cup in the interim. Andoni Iraola’s side have been among the league’s streakiest this season, starting so sluggishly, bursting into form and then hitting a brick wall against Tottenham and Liverpool. It looked as if they might have got a taste for victory again here, but West Ham had other ideas.
Having finalised his loan from Manchester City last week, David Moyes wasted no time in handing Phillips his first West Ham start. After so long sitting on the shelf at City, an acclimatisation period to shake off the dust and cobwebs was to be expected.
Less expected was the goal which came after only three minutes, Phillips caught dawdling on the ball by Ryan Christie, dispossessed on the edge of the area and only able to watch in grim resignation as Solanke rolled in his 15th goal of the season. It could have got even worse for the hosts, Marcos Senesi lashing over after finding space in the box at a set piece.
After 11 days without a game due to their early exit from the FA Cup, West Ham struggled to clank into gear. There were slips, misplaced passes and attacks which sputtered away to nothing, with their only shot on target in the opening half an hour, a gently curling effort from Phillips, resulting in an easy gather for Neto.
Bournemouth, meanwhile, brought the frantic pressing tempo that has come to characterise their game under Iraola, hounding West Ham’s defenders and breaking up passing moves at source. They should have made it 2-0 on the 35-minute mark, Christie winning the ball high up the pitch once more and threading it to Solanke who, having slipped in Antoine Semenyo to his right, could only watch as Alphonse Areola rushed off his line to make a desperate save.
Jarrod Bowen had a chance to put things right before half-time when he was picked out by Ward-Prowse, but he failed to find a way past Neto from close range. As West Ham pushed for an equaliser before half-time, the game opened up, with Solanke striding forward from deep and finding Semenyo again only for his shot to take a wicked deflection and sail over the crossbar. The hosts found themselves pinned back as the half-time whistle went, Moyes turning on his heel and jogging down the tunnel without a backwards look. He had little reason to like what he had seen and, when the teams re-emerged, he had made an adjustment in midfield, Edson Álvarez staying deep while Phillips and Tomas Soucek pushed higher up the field.
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West Ham gradually shook themselves awake in the second half, Soucek thumping a header wide after a trademark free-kick delivery from Ward-Prowse. Mohammed Kudus, back from an unsuccessful Africa Cup of Nations campaign with Ghana, reset the mood when, with 60 minutes on the clock, he went past Lloyd Kelly out wide and drew a clip on the heel. After a short VAR check, Tim Robinson, the referee, was called over to the monitor and duly awarded the penalty. Ward-Prowse, uncannily accurate from 35 yards let alone 12, made no mistake.
Bournemouth did not allow themselves to be steamrollered even as West Ham gained ominous momentum. Christie dragged just wide from the edge of the area, while Areola had to be alert as the visitors sent in low crosses from both flanks. West Ham had their chances, too, but neither side could force a winner. Iraola can be pleased with his side’s frenetic energy, Moyes with the way his players rolled up their sleeves for the fightback. Phillips, who was given an encouraging cheer as he made way in the second half, will just be glad his first outing for his new club did not end in a chastening defeat.