This week, the Hammers opened talks with out-of-work Julen Lopetegui about taking over from Moyes when the Scot’s contract expires in June – and if he was looking for a show of support from his players at Stamford Bridge, it never materialised.
West Ham did hit the bar twice through Jarrod Bowen in the first half but were wretched defensively, and were caught out yet again two minutes into the second period when Madueke squared for Nicolas Jackson to add a fourth.
Jackson doubled his tally from yet another Chelsea break 10 minutes from time when a VAR check overruled an initial offside flag against the Senegal striker, in one final painful moment of a miserable afternoon for Moyes and West Ham, as they shipped five for the second time in three games.
The handsome victory moves Chelsea above Manchester United in the Premier League table – and very much in contention for qualification for Europe.
Both Moyes and Mauricio Pochettino came into Sunday’s game with question marks over their futures.
Despite that, the form of the respective clubs could not have been more contrasting – and it showed once Palmer rifled in the opener when Madueke’s cross deflected into his path.
West Ham had started the better until that point and were inches from an instant equaliser when Djordje Petrovic’s weak punch was turned onto the bar by Bowen.
Chelsea took control from then though, and cut the Hammers apart at will. A second felt inevitable, and it came when Gallagher’s similarly powerful finish beat Areola after Madueke’s mis-control in the box.
The game was as good as over before the break when Madueke, who gave Emerson a torrid time from the first whistle, tapped home a third after Thiago Silva nodded a corner into his path.
Moyes resisted the urger to make sweeping half-time changes and introduced only James Ward-Prowse for Edson Alvarez at the break, though his hopes of a comeback were in tatters within minutes.
A straight ball over the top from Trevoh Chalobah saw Madueke beat Emerson again, and he squared to give Jackson a simple finish.
Cole Palmer moved back to within four goals of Erling Haaland in the Golden Boot race
Bowen, who had already hit the bar again before the break, soon made it a hat-trick of near misses when his knuckle-ball smashed the woodwork. He was then denied a consolation again when his fine free-kick was turned over by the fingertips of Petrovic.
Chelsea continued their assault on the West Ham defence as Palmer played Mykhailo Mudryk in behind with a sumptuous pass, but Areola spared his side any more misery with a smart reaction save.
There was still time for things to get worse, though. First Lucas Paqueta was forced off injured before Moises Caicedo’s through ball put Jackson in one-on-one, and though the offside flag initially denied him a second a VAR check ruled him just ahead of the last man.
Most of the West Ham supporters had long gone by that point, having booed their side off at half-time, with the recriminations after conceding five goals for the fourth time this season already underway.
West Ham boss David Moyes had not won a Premier League away game at Stamford Bridge in 18 attempts – but this was surely the most miserable of all for the veteran manager.
He cut a dispirited figure in the away dugout for much of the game, and barely appeared on the touchline for most of the second half.
Source SkySports
