And here is Ed’s report:
That’s all from me. Thanks for your emails. Ed Aarons’s match report will be here shortly.
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David Moyes speaks: “At half-time we told the players we needed to get more of the ball and try to play better. It was a very tough game – it wasn’t easy. I didn’t want to take any of the forward players off. I wanted us to be a threat. It was a tough place to come. The players showed great character and commitment and stuck together. We’ve lost games like this in the past.”
Two Pablos scored the goals for West Ham. I’m guessing that might be the first time to different Pablos have scored in an FA Cup tie.
While we wait for the match report to arrive, take a look at some of the best photos from this weekend’s FA Cup ties in this here Dozen:
Declan Rice speaks: “We were really professional . We knew what they were going to throw at us. They treat throw-ins like corners. The old West Ham last season might have come here and lost this.”
The scorer of West Ham’s first goal, Pablo Zabaleta, speaks: “It was my first goal in a West ham shirt which is something special. It took me two years,” he laughs. “It was a great feeling. It was a great performance and we played with a respect that this competition deserves. We have a great squad and great players and I’m so pleased for the team.”
Full-time: Gillingham 0-2 West Ham
West Ham are into the fourth round. Gillingham put everything into that and made the Hammers battle more than they would have liked. It wasn’t a pretty win but it was a professional one – and it’s the second one of David Moyes’s second coming at West Ham. All hail the Moyesiah.
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Goal! Gillingham 0-2 West Ham (Fornals 90)
With everyone forwards, West ham break, Haller finds Anderson, who dribbles inside and squares it for Fornals to drill home with his left foot. Game over.
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90+4 min: Gillingham win a free-kick on the halfway line after Diop clatters into Hanlan. the ball is launched into the box, where it is cleared to Marshall, whose shot is deflected out for a throw.
90+2 min: There are four minutes of injury time. Gillingham wallop a free-kick into the box from a deep area but Ogbonna towers above everyone to head clear.
90 min: It’s a dangerous corner aimed at the penalty spot that Ogbonna springs up to head clear. But back come Gillingham. Ogilvie fires in a cross that the Hammers clear to the edge of the box, where O’Keefe scuffs a shot wide.
88 min: There’s some slick interplay between O’Keefe and Jones on the edge of the West Ham box. the ball arrives at Charles-Cook’s feet but he loses possession as he shapes to cross. But Gillingham come back again and win a corner …
86 min: Ndjoli is on for Fuller as Gillingham make their last change. A moment later Marshall whips a threatening cross in from the right that Fabianski leaps off his line to collect. That was sharp goalkeeping again.
85 min: Ogilvie sends a long throw arrowing into the box but West ham clear.
83 min: West Ham clear Lee’s outswinger but O’Keefe’s volleys back at goal. His effort is deflected on the way through and Fabianski gathers comfortably. He’s had a solid game today. He’s had to deal with an aerial bombardment and he’s done it well.
82 min: Hanlan wins a corner after applying pressure on the right wing. Can they make it count?
81 min: Marshall is on for O’Connor and Charles-Cook is on for Jakubiak.
79 min: Fornals tries to find the top corner after rushing on to a through-ball and taking the ball wide of Bonham. He spins and tries to curl the ball into the far corner but Ehmer leaps to head clear. A moment later Zabaleta is booked for dissent after falling in the box under pressure and going ballistic when a he doesn’t get a penalty. There wasn’t enough contact to warrant a spot-kick.
77 min: Evans probably needed to make another substitution before that goal. Gillingham were struggling to cover the yards after putting so much into the first 70 minutes.
75 min: Gillingham come rushing back at West Ham with Hanlan crashing a shot against the underside of the crossbar before looking up to see he was flagged for offside.
Goal! Gillingham 0-1 West Ham (Zabaleta 74)
Well, that was coming. Masuaku finds Anderson on the left before continuing his run into the box. Anderson plays a delightful little pass in behind the Gillingham defence to find Masuaku again. He cuts a cross back that Fornals swipes at and misses before Zabaleta thrashes home with a scrappy finish from 15 yards out. Bonham got a hand to it but couldn’t keep it out.
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71 min: O’Keefe has dropped to the floor in need of treatment. Gillingham are visibly wilting. They’ve put everything into this. And Rice is getting treatment for a cut above his left eye, too. I think lee caught him with an elbow while competing for a header a few moments ago. There was nothing malicious in the challenge – just a coming together.
70 min: Fornals is on in place of Snodgrass.
67 min: West Ham continue to dominate. Masuaku waltzes all of 50 yards forwards before popping the ball off to Haller on the edge of the box … but that man Tucker is in the way again and gets a vital touch. What a game he is having.
65 min: Snodgrass whips a lovely free-kick into the box towards Rice, who can’t quite strertch to get a foot onto it and divert it into the goal. Rice is screaming for a penalty and the replay shows O’Connor had a handful of his shirt and was holding him back. If VAR was at this game that would have been given as a spot-kick. But it’s not, so I’ll shut up.
64 min: Masuaku drills a crossfield ball from one side of the pitch to the other, where Zabaleta inexplicably miscontrols. “The Premier League, you’re having a laugh,” taunt the home fans.
63 min: Ogilvie is bundled over by Anderson in the corner and Gillingham survive another West ham attack. Steve Evans said he wanted his side to still be in the game after 70 minutes. They have seven more to go and then they will have fulfilled their manager’s wish.
61 min: Anderson beats Lee for fun with some trickery on the left wing but his low cross is cleared. West Ham are playing with a bit of pizazz now and it’s making for a much better game, mercifully.
59 min: Hanlan skips past Balbuena near the touchline but as he does so he takes the ball this far out of play. It was such a promising position too.
57 min: Lanzini has a shot at goal after a lovely give and go with Haller near the edge of the box. His shot took a deflection on the way through and lost some of its oomph. A moment later Bonham has to arc his back and claw away a cross from Zabaleta that was dipping beneath his crossbar.
55 min: West Ham are beginning to build a head of steam, partly because they are going long themselves now, instead of playing keep ball in defence for long stretches every time they get the ball.
53 min: Masuaku whips a ball into the near post, where Tucker is there again. This is the best performance by a Tucker since this.
51 min: Snodgrass barges into Hanlan 35 yards from goal. It’s a Gillingham free-kick in a central position. Lee clips it to the back post, it’s flicked back into the box towards Hanlan, but West Ham clear.
50 min: Tucker fails to get a clean connection on a header after West Ham punt the ball forwards. Haller rushes in behind him and clatters a shot against the near post from a tight angle. Oh Sébastien!
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49 min: On the subject of that Haller miss, Ian Sargeant writes: “That missed by a metre for every million we paid for him.”
48 min: West Ham win a corner but Snodgrass doesn’t clear the first man.
46 min: Haller is sent racing through on goal after a lovely dink into his path from Anderson. He takes one touch and shapes to shoot before wedging a hopeless effort around 10 yards over as Bonham rushed out at him. That was truly shocking.
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Want to know what went on in the other FA Cup games today? Have a read of our round-up then:
Half-time: Gillingham 0-0 West Ham
Please come back for the second half. It has to be better than the first one.
45 min: Hoof! Thwack! Oof! Ooyah! This is about as scrappy as it gets. The highlight of the past two minutes is Lanzini making a tackle.
43 min: Haller rolls the ball into the net … but he’s offside.
41 min: Zabaleta replaces Fredericks in a straight swap at right-back. Zabaleta is only 34. In my mind he should be at least pension age.
39 min: Fredericks looks to have twanged his left hamstring as he tracked back. He won’t run this off.
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37 min: Ogbonna tries to skip past O’Keefe on the left but the Gills midfielder clips his heels and West Ham have a free-kick on the left about 40 yards from goal. Lanzini clips a low one into Anderson at the near post but it bobbles and Anderson can’t get his shot away under pressure. That was a clever little set piece. It was a disguised delivery.
34 min: Gillingham’s midfield is giving it absolutely everything. They’re closing down every inch of space and making West Ham play long balls towards Haller that Ehmer and Tucker are gobbling up.
32 min: It’s not a classic this. I tell you what is a classic, though: Tomy Super Cup football. I rediscovered my 32-year-old version of the game over Christmas and cleaned it up for my kids. They think it’s ace. They’re right, it is. It’s much better than Subbuteo. Discuss …
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29 min: Masuaku wins a corner after a jet-heeled burst up the left. Snodgrass curls in a delicious ball to the penalty spot but no West ham player is anywhere near it and Gillingham clear after watching it bounce.
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28 min: Tucker is doing a very good job of handling Haller. He’s only 20 and does not appear to be as tall as the big French striker but is using his body brilliantly to prevent Haller getting any joy on the turn.
27 min: The Hammers defender is back in the game sporting a brand new white shirt and no apparent injury. That was odd. He’s a fast healer.
26 min: There’s a stoppage as Balbuena appears to be oozing a bit of blood from some unspecified part of his face. I think he’ll survive, though.
25 min: Snodgrass stands over the free-kick. But his attempted effort is curled straight into the wall. That was poor. Where’s Dimitri Payet these days?
23 min: The corner is whipped into the near post where Hanlan deflects it at goal only to see Fabianksi make a smart save. A moment later Gillingham concede a free-kick 20 yards from goal after Haller wis clumsily brought down after a mix-up in Gillingham defence.
22 min: Balbuena is put under intense pressure by Hanlan, who briefly nicks the ball off the defender, who manages to get a foot in to concede a corner.
20 min: Ogbonna floats a ball down the left wing towards Anderson but it runs out of play. West ham’s midfield has been anonymous so far. No one is showing for the ball.
18 min: Jakubiak dinks a little volley towards Hanlan, almost getting it over Diop, who leaps up and nods it out of the Gillingham forward’s path around 25 yards from goal. Steve Evans will be delighted with the start his team has made. They haven’t given West Ham any time to get going.
15 min: O’Connor backheels it to Lee, but the little playmaker takes far too long to get his shot away, burying it into the onrushing wall.
14 min: Lee is dragged down by Rice after wriggling his way through with a skilful burst. This free-kick is in a very decent position, right of centre and 20 yards out. Lee and O’Connor are standing over it …
12 min: This one is curled in to the back post where it bounces once, causing mild panic in the Hammers defence, before being hoofed clear. It’s not pretty on the eye this, but it is kind of hypnotic.
11 min: Jakubiak shows a clean pair of heels Balbuena and lys the ball off for Ogilvie on the overlap but his cross is blocked. It’s another corner for the Gills.
9 min: The corner doesn’t clear the front post. It’s scrappy stuff this. It’s like watching The Big Match in 1984. Just a collection of set pieces played out to a visceral soundtrack of roaring supporters.
8 min: The free-kick is walloped in to the back post where it’s cleared for a throw-in. Ogilvie hurls it in Rory Delap-style and it’s nodded out for a corner. This is uncomfortable for the Hammers.
7 min: The corner is overhit and cleared on the back post. A moment later Jakubiak is left in a heap on the floor near the touchline around 45 yards from goal. This is decent chance to get a good ball in.
6 min: Gilingham lump a long ball forwards which causes Ogbonna all kinds of trouble as the wind gets hold of it, forcing the defender to head across his own goal and out of play for a corner. He smiles wryly, but that was an awkward moment and he could have been left with cartoon pie on his face had he got the direction of his header wrong.
4 min: Snodgrass gifts possession to Gillingham in midfield. Jones pops the ball through to Jakubiak, but the striker’s touch is heavy and West Ham regain possession. That was a good chance for Gillingham had his touch been even remotely decent.
3 min: Diop floats a long ball forwards. The muscular Haller tries to make a nuisance of himself but Tucker does a good job of holding him off and Gillingham clear.
2 min: It’s drilled in at the near post, where West Ham hook it clear.
Peep! It's the first half!
1 min: West Ham get the game under way. Gillingham, in blue, are kicking from right to left. West Ham, in their all white away kits, are kicking the other way. Gllingham win a corner almost immediately …
All matches in the FA Cup third-round are kicking off a minute later than they would ordinarily to encourage fans to ‘Take A Minute’ to think about looking after their mental health. It’s part of the Heads Up campaign and Barry Glendenning has written about it here:
There’s a cracking atmosphere at the Priestfield Stadium, where a crowd of around 11,000 are belting their songs out into the chilly evening air in Kent. And here come the teams …
David Moyes speaks: “I wanted to use the momentum [from the Bournemouth game]. I want everything to get better. It’s a different game tonight though … the pitch isn’t the same as what we’re used to in the Premier League.”
And here’s Gillingham manager Steve Evans: “West Ham are in town. I’m surprised in how strong David has gone [with his team selection] but we’re ready for it. Moyesy will know what he’ll get from us and we know what we’ll get from him. We grew up at Celtic together. We want to be in the Cup tie for 70 minutes and if we are I think David will be the more nervous manager.”
“Is that Diop in midfield, or has Moyesy switched to a 3-4-3?” asks Graeme Arthur. “Was at the game on New Year’s Day (brought my two young daughters over from France for their first experience of live football and they get to see a 4-0 thrashing - something I’d never seen in all my years of intermittent attendance!) and my friend Iain opined that Diop in midfield would be a smart move.” I’m guessing it’s a 3-4-3 Graeme though we won’t know for sure until we see them line up.
A much-changed Liverpool team has beaten Everton 1-0 at Anfield. You can look in on the reaction to that with Simon Burnton’s minute-by-minute report here … but be sure to come back to me afterwards.
It’s the Steve Evans show!
PREVIEW | Steve Evans talks us through his team selection ahead of tonight's game with @WestHam.#Gills #InThisTogether pic.twitter.com/cIlQPBPOVL
— Gillingham FC (@TheGillsFC) January 5, 2020
Team news
Gillingham: Bonham, Fuller, Ogilvie, Tucker, Ehmer, O’Keefe, Jones, O’Connor, Lee, Hanlan, Jakubiak. Subs: Walsh, Hodson, Willock, Pringle, Marshall, Charles-Cook, Ndjoli.
West Ham: Fabianski, Fredericks, Balbuena, Ogbonna, Diop, Masuaku, Rice, Snodgrass, Lanzini, Felipe Anderson, Haller. Subs: Roberto, Zabaleta, Reid, Sanchez, Fornals, Holland, Ajeti.
Referee: Andrew Madley
It’s a strong West Ham side. Moyes makes just three changes to the side which beat Bournemouth 4-0 in his first match back in charge, and two of those were injury-enforced. Mark Noble and Aaron Cresswell were carrying knocks so Issa Diop and Arthur Masuaku come in, while Manuel Lanzini replaces Pablo Fornals.
Alex Jakubiak comes in for Mikael Mandron in attack for Gillingham. Mandrom has just become a father and he’s had hardly any sleep the past two nights, according to his manager.
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Preamble
Hello! Let’s be honest. The reason this is on TV is because at the time the fixtures came out it had potential banana skin written all over it. Since then, Manuel Pellegrini has shuffled through the West Ham exit door to be replaced by David Moyes. The Hammers have enjoyed a 4-0 win over Bournemouth in his sole match in charge since rejoining the club so it is an assignment that doesn’t look as a dangerous now as it did when the draw was made. That’s not to say this will be a cakewalk for the Hammers. They will likely field a rotated starting XI and Moyes’s focus will be on making sure he keeps his squad fit and well to stay clear of any relegation trouble this season.
Gills boss Steve Evans has admitted that Moyes’s appointment has hit his side’s chances of a Cup upset. “I loved the draw when it came out,” he said. “West Ham, one of the iconic London clubs, at the Priestfield with the television all over it, because they’ve lost to lower-league clubs in the cups. With Mr Pellegrini in charge I wasn’t sure how much of a priority it would be for them; how strong they’d be. How much he would think they could turn up and win. I wouldn’t know his mindset but I know David Moyes’s. He will want to win and want to progress. He will get them into a disciplined shape, working harder and smarter. I would say 100% West Ham will stay in the Premier League. I doubted that when I left the London Stadium last week.”
If Gillingham do cause an Cup upset, their fans will likely have played a part in it. The Priestfield Stadium will be rocking as the locals try to terrify their illustrious visitors into making errors. The Gills are in decent form too. They are unbeaten in seven and have only conceded three goals in those matches. The two sides have met four times in their history, between 2003 and 2005, when they were both in the second tier. Gillingham won one of those meetings, 2-0 at home. How they would love to repeat that under the lights this evening.
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