London: West Ham maintained their strong form and stunned Manchester City with a 2-1 victory on Saturday, inflicting a second loss in the champion's Premier League title defense.
Morgan Amalfitano opened the scoring for West Ham with a 22nd minute tap-in following a low pass into the box from Enner Valencia.
Diafra Sakho scored his seventh goal in seven games to double West Ham's lead in the 75th, after connecting with a cross from Aaron Cresswell. Goal-line technology showed that it was valid, after City goalkeeper Joe Hart had initially appeared to have clawed the header off the line.
David Silva magnificently halved West Ham's lead two minutes later, darting past four tackles and slotting expertly past Adrian. After the goal, a late surge from City wasn't enough and the home fans at Upton Park erupted into jubilation at the final whistle.
"This is a famous victory for us and one that we will treasure for a long, long time," West Ham manager Sam Allardyce said.
West Ham's midfield took a hold of the game early on. Man of the match Alex Song, on a season-long loan from Barcelona, dictated the pace in the center of midfield, outplaying a subdued Yaya Toure and City's other stars.
"Every man went out there, gave it their all, deserved the victory that I don't think too many people expected," Allardyce said.
West Ham at times rode their luck in the second half with City's in-form striker Sergio Aguero looking especially dangerous.
"West Ham played very well and with a very high intensity," City manager Manuel Pellegrini said after the match. "We had a lot of chances to score, but it is difficult to win if you don't take them. We were very unlucky in the second half. We hit the post and went just wide with another."
The Hammers are now just a point behind City.
"I am so pleased by the amount of chances we created today...but we have to keep our feet on the ground and not get too carried away with this result," Allardyce said.
The result means City lose the opportunity to gain ground on Premier League leader Chelsea, who play against Manchester United on Sunday.
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