West Ham vs Genk LIVE: Europa League result, final score and reaction tonight
Relive all the live action from the London Stadium
West Ham continued their European cruise with a thumping 3-0 win over Belgian side Genk.
Goals from Craig Dawson, Issa Diop and Jarrod Bowen made it three wins out of three for the Hammers in their maiden Europa League group campaign and kept them firmly on course for the knockout stages.
West Ham are already six points clear at the top of Group H and could even secure qualification as group winners in their next match, in Genk in a fortnight, with two games to spare.
Unlike Sunday’s opponents Tottenham, who left their entire starting XI at home for their unsuccessful continental trip to Vitesse Arnhem, Hammers boss David Moyes kept the likes of Bowen, Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek and Aaron Cresswell in his line-up.
Moyes is clearly eager to secure qualification as quickly as possible, although he took no risks with striker Michail Antonio, having rested him completely ahead of the London derby.
Antonio’s absence as the focal point of West Ham’s attack was felt in a disjointed first half against the Belgian Cup holders.
The hosts were given an early fright when Genk had the ball in the net after Theo Bongonda converted a cross from Junya Ito, but the latter was offside.
Soucek had needed plastic surgery on some horrific facial injuries earlier in the week, having been caught by a stray boot against Everton on Sunday.
But that did not stop the Czech international getting his head to a Rice cross for West Ham’s best chance of the opening stages, with Genk goalkeeper Maarten Vandevoordt making a diving save.
With the Hammers settling down, Bowen missed a golden opportunity on the half hour when he kicked at thin air in front of goal from Ben Johnson’s inviting low cross, and Dawson headed over from a corner.
Yet West Ham had another lucky escape when goalkeeper Alphonse Areola was beaten to a cross by Genk’s towering striker Paul Onuachu, whose header looped just wide.
Bowen failed to get on the end of another low cross, this time from Cresswell, before West Ham broke the deadlock in first-half stoppage time.
Cresswell swung in a corner and centre-half Dawson rose highest to steer the ball home off his shoulder.
West Ham have become set-piece specialists under Moyes and they were at it again at the start of the second half, Dawson’s defensive partner Diop heading home at the near post from Cresswell’s free-kick.
Moments later the hosts stole possession near the halfway line and Bowen galloped forward before firing home a fine solo goal to wrap up the victory.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
42 mins: Bongonda’s just come alive over the last few minutes or so. He does a nice little flick to get the ball around Soucek before he sprints down the line. He passes it back to Arteaga whose cross isn’t great and comes straight to Cresswell for West Ham.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
39 mins: Close! Cresswell is sent down the left side of the box once again and floats a cross to the back post. Soucek arrives to win the header but Arteaga does just enough to put him off and the ball skims off the top of his head and comes out to Bongonda.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
36 mins: Bongonda shifts the ball over to the left of the box and wins a corner when Rice puts his low cross behind. Genk play it short to Arteaga who curls one into the middle of the box. Areola comes out to claim it but get nowhere near the ball as Onuachu leaps to win the header. He loops it goalwards but the effort drops agonisingly wide of the left-hand post!
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
33 mins: Genk have been defensively solid so far but are finding it tough to transition into attack. Ito has been their main ball carrier over on the right wing but he doesn’t have many options coming forward with him and inevitably West Ham recover possession.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
30 mins: West Ham are starting to turn it on. Cresswell’s getting into a lot of space over on the left side and just needs bodies in the box to meet his crosses.
The Hammers win a corner that Bowen sends into the box. Lucumi gets a glancing head to the ball but it reaches Dawson who heads it over the bar.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
27 mins: Chance! Big chance for West Ham to take the lead as Lanzini slides the ball into the right side of the box to match Johnson’s overlapping run. Johnson cuts the ball back from the byline and puts it on a plate for Bowen on the edge of the six-yard box. He shoots but misses the ball! It bounces off his standing leg and falls to Cresswell who belts it wide of goal.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
24 mins: Preciado got clattered by Soucek as he won the aerial ball and stayed down. He gets a check over from the medics but is fine to play on.
Onuachu tries to get the better of Diop as the ball comes up the pitch but the defender holds him off and wins a free kick.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
21 mins: Chance! Bowen knocks a corner kick short to Rice who sets himself and curls a cross over to the back post. Soucek wins the header and fires it towards the near bottom corner but Vandevoordt leaps across to palm the ball away. Good save!
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
18 mins: West Ham look like they’re missing the focal point that Michail Antonio provides when he leads the line. Their attacking play tonight seems to involve sharp, cutting passes into the box or relying on the wide men making runs past defenders. It’s not quite working so far tonight.
West Ham 0 - 0 Genk
15 mins: Maarten Vandevoordt punts a long ball straight down the middle as Bongonda flies across from the right. Areola spots the developing danger and storms out of his box to get to the ball first. He does but gets cleaned out by Genk forward as West Ham clear their lines.
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