West Ham United 2-1 Anderlecht: Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma score as Hammers progress

West Ham manager David Moyes praised Jarrod Bowen after he equalled the Hammers’ all-time European goalscoring record in the 2-1 win over Anderlecht.

First-half goals from Said Benrahma and Bowen were enough to make it four wins from four in Group B despite Sebastiano Esposito’s late penalty.

David Moyes’ side still need a point from their final two games to confirm their direct passage to the last 16.

“It certainly is a feather in his cap,” Moyes said of England international Bowen’s achievement. “Maybe there are more European games these days with the group stages, but it’s still a good thing to have and hopefully he’ll score a lot more.

“He’s much closer to what he was last year and he looks a threat every time he plays.”

West Ham were too good for their visitors throughout, with Wolves loanee Fabio Silva barely making an impact for Anderlecht up front.

Benrahma’s well-taken free-kick gave the hosts the lead before Bowen drove home his third European goal of the campaign.

The final 15 minutes witnessed unpleasant scenes as rival supporters threw seats at each other, prompting the police to intervene to keep them apart.

Benrahma makes an impact

Benrahma has been a frustrating performer for West Ham since his arrival from Brentford two years ago.

The Algerian is capable of moments of brilliance but, as Moyes has noted, too often his end product fails to match the approach work.

His 14th-minute opener was superb. Sizing up his free-kick from a central position 20 yards out, he caught it just right. And while he was aided by the Anderlecht wall breaking too early, it had the pace and precision to beat Hendrik van Crombrugge.

Yet in the second half came one of those moments Moyes finds so irritating. Scampering down the left, in loads of space, Benrahma tried to find a team-mate but overhit his cross, forcing central defender Ben Johnson to run back and retrieve.

Until Benrahma loses that inconsistency from his game, it is hard to see how he gets a place in Moyes’ first-choice line-up on a regular basis.

Hammers’ injury concerns

Aside from the simmering tension in the stands, the negatives for West Ham came on the injury front.

Angelo Ogbonna missed the final six months of last season after suffering a cruciate injury and worked hard all summer on his rehabilitation.

But the 34-year-old lasted only 22 minutes before signalling he could not continue and was replaced by Craig Dawson.

The substitute then had to be replaced himself 15 minutes before the end, not long after a clash of heads with team-mate Flynn Downes.

In his post-match news conference Moyes said Ogbonna had a tight hamstring, while Dawson went off with a dead leg.

With new signing Nayef Aguerd still a little way off a first-team return despite being in training after recovering from an ankle injury sustained in pre-season, it could mean the Hammers are short in defence as they face three Premier League games in a week, which includes a trip to Liverpool.