Having already gone out in the EFL Cup through a 4-1 loss against Everton FC, West Ham United went into their FA Cup matchup against Stockport County with high hopes to progress further.
After a game full of rain and not much else, Craig Dawson put the ball into the back of the net with a great header from Jarrod Bowen's cross.
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Story of the game
After the first whistle the hosts were instantly put on the back foot as West Ham came close twice inside the first 15 minutes. First Said Benrahma hit the post and then Andriy Yarmolenko just missed the goal from range.
Then the game was shortly stopped due to a firework display which was so loud that it disrupted play.
Coming close to the half-hour mark, Benrahma tried his luck from 30-yards-out, but his effort went wide.
Shortly after Manuel Lanzini tested his ability to shoot from deep but hit his attempt straight at the goalkeeper.
In the final five minutes of the first half both Angelo Ogbonna and Declan Rice tried putting the Hammers ahead, but again their efforts ultimately went wide.
The first 30 minutes of the second half were as eventful as watching paint dry with West Ham having no shots to Stockport's one.
In the 81st minute substitute Tomas Soucek connected with Vladimir Coufal's cross but his header was just wide.
The Hammers finally found the back of the net moments later though. A fantastic cross from Bowen found Dawson in the box and the Watford loanee put the ball into the bottom corner.
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Takeaways
West Ham's striker troubles need addressing
After the sale of Sebastien Haller to Ajax, the Hammers are now just left with the services of Michail Antonio up top even though he has been struggling with a hamstring injury. He just doesn't look fit enough to lead the line on his own at the moment, so getting help is a must.
Linked with Red Bull Salzburg's Patson Daka, Boulaye Dia of Stade de Reims and Adam Armstrong of Blackburn Rovers, it's clear as day that they need to bring someone in sooner rather than later.