West Ham United charge up to fourth after pulling off shock Manchester City win

MANCHESTER City’s bid to put pressure on EPL leaders Chelsea suffered a setback as the champions slumped to a surprise 2-1 defeat at West Ham.

MANCHESTER City’s bid to put pressure on Premier League leaders Chelsea suffered a setback as the champions slumped to a surprise 2-1 defeat at West Ham.

SANCHEZ BRACE HANDS ARSENAL RELIEVING WIN

EPL WRAP: SAINTS GO SECOND, JEDINAK’S PENALTY POISE

BALOTELLI MISFIRES AGAIN AS LIVERPOOL STRUGGLE

Manuel Pellegrini’s team had hoped to close the gap on the Blues to two points ahead of their rivals’ clash with Manchester United on Monday morning (EDT).

But West Ham maintained their impressive recent form to stun the visitors, who were beaten in the league for the second time this season following their loss against Stoke in late August.

Morgan Amalfitano opened the scoring in the 21st minute and Diafra Sakho added the decisive second goal in the 75th minute. David Silva set up a tense finish when City’s Spanish forward scored a fine individual effort two minutes later, but the fourth-placed Hammers held on for a fourth win in their past five matches.

They are just one point behind City.

“We had a lot of chances to score but it is difficult to win if you don’t take them,” Pellegrini said.

“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.

“We are just starting the season, we have 80 points left to play for. So it is early.

“We will continue fighting because there is no title being handed out at the moment.”

Hammers counterpart Sam Allardyce was ecstatic, especially coming just one month after beating last season’s runners up Liverpool.

“This is a famous victory for us and one that we will treasure for a long, long time,” he said.

Diafra Sakho got on the scoresheet yet again.

West Ham’s midfield took a hold of the game early on. Man of the match Alex Song, on a season-long loan from Barcelona, dictated the pace in the center of midfield, outplaying a subdued Yaya Toure and City’s other stars.

“Every man went out there, gave it their all, deserved the victory that I don’t think too many people expected,” Allardyce said.

“I am so pleased by the amount of chances we created today...but we have to keep our feet on the ground and not get too carried away with this result.

Allardyce even compared Song influence on the game to that of City’s star midfielder Toure at his pomp.

“That’s a Yaya Toure-type signing for us. He’s a top quality player of the highest calibre and he’ll provide the sort of service our front line need,” he said.

“He links everything together very well so we’ve got a top quality international player that’s played for Arsenal, for Barcelona and in the Champions League.

“He’s obviously being slightly overshadowed by Enner Valencia and Sakho at the moment but he’ll have a big impact for us.

“He’s a massive influence on the training ground and in the changing room - with his dress sense particularly.

“Everyone has a lot respect for what he’s done before. He hasn’t hit top form yet but he’s certainly a major influence for us.”

Joe Hart can’t keep out Diafra Sakho’s effort.

Originally published as West Ham United charge up to fourth after pulling off shock Manchester City win