West Ham edge five-goal thriller against Fulham to give Potter first win

Graham Potter won his first Premier League match in charge of West Ham United as they overcame Fulham 3-2 in an entertaining affair on Tuesday.

Former Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea head coach Potter, who was appointed by the Hammers last week, saw his side overcome a slightly slow start to lead 2-0 at half-time, with Carlos Soler pouncing on Andreas Pereira's error before Tomas Soucek netted a second goal.

Alex Iwobi pulled one back as his cross floated in, but West Ham restored their two-goal advantage after another Fulham mishap, Danny Ings tackling Bernd Leno before Lucas Paqueta finished.

Another unorthodox Iwobi goal brought Fulham back into the game once more at the London Stadium, yet Marco Silva's men could not force an equaliser.

Victory moves West Ham up to 12th, now just four points behind ninth-placed Fulham.

How the match unfolded

Visitors Fulham were superior in the opening exchanges and went close when Harry Wilson volleyed Iwobi's cross onto the bar, but West Ham rode out that difficult period and struck twice in quick succession just after the half-hour mark.

Pereira hit a misdirected pass across the face of his own box straight to Soler, who caressed the ball into the far corner as Leno rushed back, before Soucek dispatched Aaron Wan-Bissaka's cross into the roof of the net only 131 seconds later.

Raul Jimenez also hit the frame of the goal before the break, and Fulham did hit back shortly after the restart when Iwobi's delivery crept in without a touch from a team-mate.

Another gift had West Ham two in front again, though, as Ings pinched the ball from Leno to leave Paqueta a straightforward finish.

Iwobi scored a goal almost identical to his first with 12 minutes to play, yet the nearest Fulham came to an equaliser saw Adama Traore blast over in stoppage time.

Potter weaves his magic

Potter's first Premier League match in charge West Ham produced three points, providing some overdue positivity at the London Stadium.

The Hammers had won just two of their previous eight league games, a run that concluded with the departure of Julen Lopetegui, but moved 10 points clear of the bottom three with this win and can now breathe easy.

Potter will concede that his new charges did enjoy some luck. Fulham struck the woodwork twice in the opening 45 minutes, with the impressive Iwobi teeing up both efforts. The goals from Soler and Paqueta also owed plenty to their generous opponents.

However, there were also signs that Potter is putting his stamp on the side.

In the absence of injured trio Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio and Niclas Fullkrug, Potter fielded a system with no out-and-out striker and lots of fluidity in attack – a hallmark of his previous teams that may be on show again against Crystal Palace on Saturday.

Cottagers keep conceding

Fulham have earned deserved plaudits for their performances this season, never looking in any danger of relegation and threatening to put themselves in the race for European football.

But Silva will be frustrated that his side's habit of shooting themselves in the foot is derailing those efforts.

Fulham were the better side at the London Stadium until Pereira's mistake, while Paqueta's goal came just as the away side were coming on strong again.

The Cottagers have now conceded seven goals in three league games, and while they managed to take a point from each of the previous two, needing to score three times to do the same was one step too far.

While Fulham were unbeaten in eight prior to this defeat, six of those matches had ended as a draw, and Silva must work to cut out the errors at the back to ensure this season does not fizzle out.

Club reports

West Ham report | Fulham report

What the managers said

Graham Potter: "It was probably not one for the purists but from our point of view we are delighted with the three points. I think we started the game a little bit passive and credit to Fulham for being in the game well and we tried to get the crowd a little bit more involved.

"Fulham scored and we thought it was a bit tough. It was about sticking together. We had some breathing space but we were never comfortable and that's why it's nice to get over the line."

Marco Silva: "When you make mistakes like we did, it's very difficult to win football matches. We were the most dominant team from the first minute and created the most chances. There was only one team that was on the pitch trying to win the game until we conceded that first goal that we gave them.

"We controlled the game and hit the crossbar. We showed the quality until then, but we have to keep the standards up throughout the game." 

Next PL fixtures Match facts

Graham Potter has become the first West Ham manager to win his first ever home Premier League game in charge of the Hammers since Sam Allardyce in August 2012 vs Aston Villa (1-0).

Fulham have lost their first Premier League game since November (vs Wolves) – ending the Cottagers’ longest unbeaten run in the competition (8 – W2 D6) since December 2008 (run of nine).

Carlos Soler’s opening goal made him the 175th player to score for West Ham in the Premier League (excl. own goals), at least two more different scorers than any other side in the competition.