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The tussle between two Championship promotion hopefuls was one of the standout ties of this second round Carabao Cup action, with the Hammers enduring a tough start to life back in the second-tier while Tonda Eckert’s side secured a dominant win at Stoke City on Saturday. Although last season’s ‘Spygate’ fiasco remains in the back of their minds, Saturday’s victory was vital in moving them off their four-point deficit, with Leo Scienza opening the scoring here early on. A heavily-rotated West Ham side were boosted by Joshua Ajala's first goal in claret and blue just before the break, before the lively striker made it a debut to remember with a second composed strike to take the lead. The cherry on top came courtesy of Taty Castellanos and Jarrod Bowen, who capitalised on the Saints’ lacklustre defending, after coming off the bench to knock out a side renowned for deep runs in this competition. West Ham’s last victory on their travels had come at Fulham at the start of March, and will breed much-needed confidence ahead of vital Championship clashes with Watford and Wolves. Story of the match It was clear Espirito Santo had one eye on fixing their Championship campaign with four academy graduates handed their first starts as Southampton fielded a mixture of regular starters and rotation options. The decision to rest key players, given their dismal start to the season, looked costly inside the opening ten minutes as the hosts broke the deadlock. Tom Fellows’ dangerous delivery into the box was headed away by Max Kilman but only into the path of Scienza, who patiently waited for a gap to appear as he navigated past several sky blue shirts before dispatching into the corner. The last time these two had met in this competition came all the way back in 1996 with Southampton prevailing as Tony Cottee was on the scoresheet for the Hammers. What West Ham would do for a lethal bagsman of his ilk today, but their new striker crafted an opportunity out of nothing on 20 minutes. Joel Piroe had limited options from a tight angle on the right but he managed to holdoff the presence of Jack Stephens, before stinging the palms of Daniel Peretz with a ferocious strike. Buoyed by opening his account for the season, Scienza was a revelation in his maiden campaign on British shores as he collected their Fan's and Players' Player of the Season awards. He was their key attacking outlet and saw his dipping free-kick from distance tipped over by Fin Herrick at full stretch. The 20-year-old famously featured in an Emirates FA Cup shootout against Leeds United last term and came to his side’s aid again, denying Scienza after Airidas Golambeckis failed to close him down. However, it was two youngsters who combined for the leveller just before the break as Lewis Orford, who has been a shining light in the opening two games, delivered a pinpoint delivery for Ajala who angled his header into the net after Perez failed to claim. Hammers take control The moment sparked West Ham into life and they felt they should have been awarded a spot kick moments later. Piroe had been integral to their forward play and the Suriname international was put up against Stephens once more and he was clipped inside the box, but referee Ruebyn Ricardo was unmoved. The second half began much like the first with both sides struggling to find any real intensity, perhaps pointing towards how their priorities lie towards their league campaigns. Nonetheless, it was proving to be Ajala’s night as he showcased the instincts of a seasoned goal-scorer to take the lead for the first time in the evening with 53 minutes on the clock. Divine Mukasa continued to be a bright spark in an advanced midfield position as the Manchester City loanee’s cross was cleared into the path of the 19-year-old, who took a crucial touch to create the space before drilling into the corner. He finished last season as the Under-21's top-scorer with 13 goals which was certainly translating seamlessly to a first-team environment. The quartet of Bowen, Arne Engels, Manor Solomon and Castellanos were introduced on the hour-mark to see out the game and the former came inches away from extending the lead but his strike was thwarted by Peretz. Those substitutions proved to be inspired moves by Espirito Santo and the pressure told just moments later with a third. Golambeckis’ long ball fell perfectly for Joel Veltman on the right-hand side who cut the ball back for Castellanos, snaffling up the chance to notch his third goal of this season’s competition. The Saints had reached the quarter-finals in the 2022/23 iteration but looked a shadow of their former free-flowing selves, perhaps suffering from the creative void left by Shea Charles’ departure to Fulham. Samuel Edozie is one of the players tasked with replacing his goal-scoring exploits and he nearly found a route back into the game as his curling strike was pushed away by Herrick eight minutes from time. The one-way traffic continued to tilt further in West Ham’s favour as they made it four moments later in a vintage Bowen move to cut inside before finding the corner, a much-needed boost after a troubled opening two matches in the league.