Five-star City demolish woeful West Ham

Monday, 9 January 2017 00:07 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters: Manchester City crushed West Ham United 5-0 to give manager Pep Guardiola the perfect introduction to the FA Cup as they cruised into the fourth round with a thumping victory at the London Stadium on Friday.

After taking the lead through Yaya Toure from the penalty spot, the five-time winners swept their opponents away with devilish attacking verve, inflicting on the beleaguered Hammers their worst ever home defeat in the competition.

They survived a solitary scare when the hosts’ Sofiane Feghouli inexplicably shot wide from in front of an open goal, but went in at the break with a 3-0 advantage after an own goal from Havard Nordtveit and an effort from David Silva.

Sergio Aguero then flicked the ball home early in the second half to become the third highest scorer in City’s history and defender John Stones netted his first for the club with a header from a corner with seven minutes remaining.

If City’s inconsistent form had started to weigh heavy on manager Guardiola, who was in the tetchiest of moods following their Premier League victory over Burnley on Monday, the Spaniard’s spirits would have been lifted by their display in the capital.