West Ham United have inflicted a first defeat of the Premier League season on Liverpool by beating the 10-man Reds 3-0 at Anfield this afternoon.
First-half goals from Manuel Lanzini and Mark Noble gave the visitors a commanding half-time lead, before Philippe Coutinho's red card early in the second period steepened the hosts' task.
Noble also saw red in the final 12 minutes, but Brendan Rodgers's side - who had won seven points in their first three outings - failed to ignite a comeback bid and Diafra Sakho completed the rout late on.
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Visiting manager Slaven Bilic could hardly have wished for a better start as the visitors - who came to Anfield on the back of successive home defeats - moved ahead inside three minutes.
Lanzini, who replaced the recently-released Kevin Nolan in the first XI, justified his selection by nipping in ahead of Joe Gomez to slot Aaron Cresswell's cross past Simon Mignolet.
Irked by conceding their first goal of the season, the Reds responded well and Roberto Firmino sent a long-range drive against the post on eight minutes in a fast-and-furious start to the contest on Merseyside.
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Having beaten Arsenal at the Emirates in their curtain-raiser, the Hammers had a taste for upsetting the odds, and Lanzini almost boosted the prospect of another shock away win on 15 minutes but the Argentine drilled narrowly wide of the goal.
It was a sign of things to come, as Dejan Lovren, heralded for his performance in North London, cheaply lost possession to Lanzini, who drilled it into the box and Noble was on hand to double the advantage on the half-hour mark.
The Reds' route back into the clash became significantly more treacherous on 53 minutes when playmaker Coutinho was given a second yellow card for a foul on Dimitri Payet.
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However, the playing field was levelled up on 78 minutes when Noble received his marching orders for a lunge on Danny Ings, before Lovren failed to throw Liverpool a lifeline shortly after by heading over from close range.
It proved costly, and Sakho benefited from some questionable defending from the hosts to slot past Mignolet in the closing embers.
Shane Callaghan
