Julen Lopetegui finally starting to look at home as West Ham put four past Ipswich

Jarrod Bowen’s goal and two assists helped under-fire Spanish manager to first home victory against Kieran McKenna’s error-prone side

Maybe Julen Lopegetui is starting to feel a little more at home in London’s East End after this comprehensive victory.
The Spaniard had suffered three straight home league defeats at the start of this campaign, an unwanted West Ham record, and the natives were starting to get restless. This win will calm the nerves around the London Stadium.
Equally important for West Ham was that team captain Jarrod Bowen, left out of the England squad for the Nations League games against Greece and Finland, gave an emphatic answer with a man-of-the-match display, a goal and two fine assists.
Lopetegui said: “We have worked for this. All our forwards scored, but our defensive work also pleased me.
“It was a good response from Jarrod. The best way to show your disappointment as a player is like this. He knows that. He is always ready to help the team, always ready to work hard, and that’s why he is a very good player.”
West Ham could hardly have got off to a better start. After just 47 seconds the ball was in the Ipswich net.
Tomas Soucek put Bowen away on the left, and somehow his low cross found Michail Antonio, who had the space to slide his shot past Arijanet Muric.
But this is West Ham. Nothing is straightforward. Four minutes later Ipswich were level, as Liam Delap neatly turned Lucas Paqueta to shoot low.
West Ham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola though should have done better to allow the ball to squirm past him and into the net at the near post.
Lopetegui’s side needed to cool things down after that hectic start, and gradually they began to regain a measure of control, as Muric foiled Bowen and then saved Mohammed Kudus’s shot.
West Ham’s defence struggled to contain Delap early on, but Ipswich’s shaky defence was always a problem, and Soucek was unlucky to see his shot deflected wide.
Jacob Greaves headed just wide as Ipswich threatened again, but Kudus hit the post with a header – and when Ipswich made an awful mess of the clearance, Soucek had the goal gaping, but Dara O’Shea managed to clear off the line.
Two minutes from half-time, West Ham broke through again, as Emerson’s fine run and cross saw Antonio thump his header against the bar. The ball bounced down and out – and Kudus was first there to nod home.
Shortly after the break, Ipswich crumbled again.
Muric could not control a Ben Johnson back pass, and Antonio pounced but the goalkeeper managed to block. The ball though came out to Bowen, who cut in from the right and arrowed his shot into the far corner.
The Ipswich goalkeeper did prevent more damage when he plunged to his right to keep out Kudus’s flick from another excellent Bowen cross, but Ipswich were starting to look increasingly ragged.
Areola partly made up for his first-half blunder, when he excellently kept out Delap’s powerful point-blank header.
But West Ham’s fourth goal arrived when Antonio cleverly fed the effervescent Bowen, who got to the byeline and crossed low, for Paqueta to slot home from close range.
Kudus, like Bowen an unstoppable force on the day, then saw his shot saved before Ipswich substitute Sammie Szmodics missed a late chance to notch a consolation goal.
Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna admitted: “We conceded poor goals at bad times. We made poor decisions.
“West Ham were very direct, and we struggled with that. West Ham did not have to work too hard to get their goals.”