More violence at the London Stadium costs West Ham a night to remember for all the right reasons against Chelsea

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Ken Dyer27 October 2016

It was West Ham’s first major challenge at their London Stadium and they so nearly made it a perfect night.

Slaven Bilic and his team played their full part and so did the crowd — all except those who decided a pulsating League Cup London derby between West Ham and Chelsea wasn’t entertaining enough for them.

Those who misbehaved just before the end did a grave disservice to the clubs they purport to support, the players who had worked so hard to make this a thoroughly enjoyable tie and the vast majority of the true supporters who had relished the spectacle.

For their part, West Ham will examine their state-of-the-art CCTV footage and look to significantly add to the 23 banning orders already made.

It is to be hoped they succeed because this kind of nonsense has no place in the modern game.

As crowd trouble goes, it was hardly a mass riot but the sight of plastic seats flying across the gap between rival, baiting supporters was unpleasant and unacceptable.

It was so nearly a night for West Ham to remember for all the right reasons.

When the time came to move from the Boleyn Ground, there was understandable anxiety among West Ham supporters that the unique atmosphere at their old home could never be replicated at the London Stadium. Last night, though, for much of the match, it came close, right from the very first chorus of Bubbles.

In fact, when Cheikhou Kouyate headed the home side into an early lead, the roar was so loud it must have rattled the saucepans in the John Lewis store at the nearby Westfield shopping complex.

Captain Mark Noble has admitted the move from Upton Park has been more difficult than the players imagined, especially early in the season when the wide, open spaces of West Ham’s new home seemed to sap their energy. There have been recent signs, though, that Noble and his team-mates feel more at home in their new abode, none more so than last night against Chelsea.

West Ham and Chelsea fans clash - in pictures

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For the vast majority of this derby, Bilic’s team played with an intensity which had been missing from some of their early‑season matches and one which surprised a Chelsea side that showed seven changes from the team who had demolished Manchester United at the weekend.

It is a real pity then, that West Ham’s satisfaction at a job well-done should be marred by the sort of ‘supporters’ no club want or need.

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