The 3-1 win, at Goodison Park, against Everton was a positive outcome to a match the Hammers desperately needed to win.
But, did it come at a cost?
The reason I ask is that the sight of Marko Arnautovic limping off the pitch was a worrying one.
The Austrian striker has been our leading light in recent times and to take on high-flying Chelsea without him could be a far stiffer task.
The reasoning behind such a claim can be unravelled using the following two statistics:
1 – Since the start of the calendar year, Arnautovic has been involved in 16 goals, scoring 9 and providing 7 assists, only Mo Salah (Liverpool) can better that with 23.
2 – When it comes to goals scored by West Ham, Arnautovic has been involved in 11 of the last 16 West Ham have scored in the Premier League, scoring 7 and providing 4 assists.
Thankfully, our spies report that Arnautovic didn’t need crutches to board the team-coach ahead of the return trip to London and only had a light strapping on his knee.
Hopefully, further assessment, allied with a couple of days rest, will see Arnautovic pronounced fit.
If that is the case, I can see Marko causing havoc in a Chelsea defence that has looked decidedly rickety at times this season, otherwise it could be a struggle, as the statistics indicate.
Fingers crossed that all turns out well.
