espnstar.com
The Italian forward struck from the penalty spot at Upton Park midway through the first half of a match short on quality, clear-cut opportunities or reasons to suggest either team deserves to be higher in the table. Radoslav Kovac added the second just before the end.
Hammers boss Gianfranco Zola will be hoping this was a repeat of last year's Boxing Day win over Pompey as his side then went on a decent run in the second half of the season.
Pompey had never lost at West Ham's ground in the Premier League but they never looked like continuing that run with this feeble effort.
To make matters worse for Pompey boss Avram Grant, he now loses several players because of the African Nations Cup - not that they made an impact in this game.
Pompey will be reminded they have to defy the odds to retain their top-flight status this season as most teams bottom at Christmas go down - West Brom in 2005 are the only team to avoid it in Premier League history.
Grant's men, however, were coming off the back of a morale-boosting victory over Liverpool and there was a mood of optimism during the week. The Hammers also had a decent result in their previous game, against Chelsea, but it did not mean this clash was any sort of spectacle.
Both sides were nervous, struggled to keep possession and gave a clear explanation as to why they started the festive period 19th and 20th in the table.
Source: http://www.espnstar.com/football/premier-league/news/detail/item370882/West-Ham-2-0-Portsmouth/
