Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer were on target as Chelsea secured a comfortable 3-0 win over West Ham, piling the pressure on new manager Julen Lopetegui.
The result raised significant questions about the direction of the Hammers under their Spanish boss, who appeared visibly frustrated on the touchline as his side struggled to contain their London rivals.
Jackson opened the scoring just three minutes into the contest and added a second shortly after, while Palmer put the result beyond doubt with a third goal moments into the second half. For Lopetegui, the defeat marks another disappointing chapter in a troubled start to his tenure at West Ham.
Despite a summer spending spree totalling £120 million on nine new signings, West Ham have little to show for their investment under Lopetegui, managing just one scrappy win at Crystal Palace and a late draw with Fulham.
The three home defeats that now hang over his record have left fans questioning whether the change in management was the right move.
Many supporters had been vocal in their desire to see former boss David Moyes depart, despite the Scot guiding the club through one of its most successful periods in recent history.
Just five matches into the new season, some sections of the London Stadium crowd have already turned on Lopetegui.
Midway through the second half, BOOS echoed around the ground as he decided to substitute Crysencio Summerville, a decision that baffled many in attendance, given Summerville was not the worst of the Hammers’ underperforming players.
Watching on from the comfort of the beIN Sports studio, Moyes may well have felt a sense of relief that he left West Ham when he did, avoiding the chaos unfolding at his former club.
In stark contrast, Chelsea look a side on the rise under Enzo Maresca. The victory at the London Stadium marked their third straight away win, temporarily lifting them to second place in the Premier League table. It was a dominant display from the Blues, who looked dangerous from the outset.
Jackson’s first goal came from a seemingly harmless free-kick that caught West Ham napping. The Senegalese forward cut inside far too easily before slipping the ball through the legs of Alphonse Areola at the near post.
Just 15 minutes later, Jackson was on the scoresheet again, taking advantage of some woeful defending. Moises Caicedo’s ball forward exposed a huge gap between West Ham’s centre-backs Max Kilman and Konstantinos Mavropanos, allowing Jackson to stroll through and finish coolly past Areola.
West Ham offered little in response, though Jarrod Bowen did miss a decent chance to pull one back, lifting his effort over the bar.
A VAR penalty check, after Summerville was pulled back by Wesley Fofana, went in Chelsea’s favour, with officials ruling “not sustained holding” as the explanation. Mohammed Kudus later had the ball in the net for the Hammers, only to be flagged offside.
Lopetegui’s halftime words appeared to fall on deaf ears, as Chelsea extended their lead within 70 seconds of the restart. Jackson turned provider this time, slipping the ball to Palmer, who evaded Kilman and fired in his second goal of the season.
Areola did make a fine save to deny Christopher Nkunku late on, but the damage had been done, and the boos at full-time told the story of a West Ham side in disarray.