James Ward-Prowse’s second-half penalty spared Kalvin Phillips’ blushes and rescued a Premier League point for West Ham against Bournemouth at London Stadium.
New Hammers signing Phillips had a debut to forget when he passed the ball straight to Dominic Solanke who put Bournemouth in front inside three minutes.
But West Ham were gifted a way back into the game in the 61st minute when Lloyd Kelly caught Mohammed Kudus in the penalty area and Ward-Prowse fired his spot-kick straight down the middle.
Neither side was able to find a winner on a cold night in the capital.
“We didn’t play particularly well with the ball, we didn’t pass it well,” West Ham manager David Moyes told BBC Match of the Day.
“Anyway, we got something out of it and we’ll take that. We’ll hopefully improve.”
The Hammers, without a win in their past four games, stay sixth in the Premier League table, while Bournemouth move 12th, eight points clear of the relegation zone.
Phillips gets rare start at London Stadium
Manchester City loanee Phillips has struggled for game time since joining Pep Guardiola’s City from Leeds for £45m in July 2022.
On Friday night he made only his third Premier League start in the past two seasons, and with only his second-ever touch in a West Ham shirt, prodded Kurt Zouma’s poor pass straight to opponent Solanke who finished from close range.
West Ham were poor in the first half and were booed off at half-time, although Jarrod Bowen had gone close with his glancing header testing Bournemouth keeper Pedro Neto.
West Ham’s equaliser came after the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) told referee Tim Robinson to look at his pitchside monitor, and the official reversed his no-penalty call.
Ward-Prowse levelled from the spot, but the hosts were unable to create any further clear-cut chances and were even booed off by a smaller number of supporters at full-time.
The Hammers have now failed to win any of their opening five games in a calendar year for the first time since 2010, though they are still in a European spot in the Premier League table.
As for Phillips, he did tighten up after the break and came off for Danny Ings to a warm reception in the 68th minute.
“I know the kind of player Phillips is and the quality he has,” said team-mate Kudus to Premier League Productions. “When you come to a different team and system it takes time to get used to everything.
“I believe in him so much and I have no doubts about him. Next game he will be better.”
