ABSOLUTE SHOWER!
Wet miserable and incredibly disappointed would sum up how most fans felt as they trudged away from the bleak 'scene of the crime', where they witnessed what was possibly the final death knell of Hammers Champions League hopes. Perhaps it is fear, perhaps the manager's tactics have been found out, or maybe the squad's lack of depth has finally and inexorably come home to roost.
Whatever the cause, the woeful performance on offer for this lunchtime's miserable 1-1 draw with Newcastle was simply NOT good enough for any team that has 'top flight' aspirations, time and again during the last ten weeks West Ham have continued to throw away the gilt edged opportunities to take advantage of other team's problems and lack of form. It seems as if the club want to emulate the deficiencies of their rivals, so poor have the recent performances been.
Admittedly the weather was atrocious today, but it was the same for both teams however it was the visitors who were able to dominate huge tracts of the game, particularly in the first half. It says something about Hammers performance that it took a 31 year old £3 Million signing from Watford, who has been relegated with TWO different clubs, to step up and score the Irons' only goal.
Too many Hammers players looked of the pace today, it was so alarming that even the imperious Declan Rice for once looked ordinary! Mikey Antonio played like he was auditioning for a new career in WWE, not helped by some typically Chris Cavannah refereeing, but Mikey spent an awful lot of the game on the deck.
Tomas Soucek played like his 'useless clone', he definitely didn't look as if he was at the races, unless you include the Donkey Derby! Säid Benrahma virtually guaranteed some bench time in the future following his petulant 'slow walk' as he was subbed off to be replaced by Nikola Vlasic who proved to be a far better option. David Moyes was less than impressed with the time Benny took to leave the pitch, he was even LESS impressed with the 'eyeball' he had with the player as the £25 Million signing from Brentford went to sit down, expect further 'metered retribution' from Moyes who is renowned for his disciplinariansim.
The classic British comedian Terry Thomas often used the expression "you lot are an absolute shower", well the weather was wet and the team WERE an absolute shower, with very few exceptions! Woeful, wayward and wasteful are some of the words beginning with the letter W used to describe Hammers performance that are polite, battling the elements along the canal tow path on the way to Hackney Wick, there was a lot of talk using other versions of the word beginning with W to describe the team's efforts, and they weren't very polite at all- Goodbye cruel dreams!-ED
Comments
We have not played well for Months
Lets not mess about we are a long way off from the side that started the season you no the carefree pacey close you down side that were winning and scoring for fun...now we are pedestrian we never start a game on the frontfoot at home or away we kickoff and sitback why? is it because the opposition have sussed us out or is it the cautionary tactics Moyes has employed....Fornals/Soucek/Antonios form have fallen off a cliff...are the players leggy is the season catching up with them? or have they suddenly got a touch of the Billy big Bo**ocks syndrome Benny is Moyes marmite if he starts he never gets to finish or he's on the bench then comes on for a cameo performance....Whilst its nice to be where we are in the table the club if they are to grow to be a BIG team who challenges each season at the top end of the table well they are going to have to change the attitude on and off the pitch otherwise we will be cherrypicked by the elite and fall back to perrenial strugglers which is what we looked like today.
Totally Agree Mac
A season that promised so much looks like becoming a damp squib.we are so predictable & the geordies goal was one of the softest seen in a iong time!
Personally
think that constant international breaks have played havoc and we have been lacking since the last one. Lanzini was a big miss today and probably should have started with Johnson at rb as Freddie just does not look fit. Vlasic deserves a run as well IMHO.
International breaks my foot!
Why should they affect US more negatively than any of the other top sides?
If your answer is going to be that they have bigger and better squads than ours then you have to blame SuGo and Co once again.
In my opinion they no longer give a fiddlers fart about our club now that their tenure is nearly over.
All they’re concerned about is getting as much out of us as they possibly can before it happens.
I thought he should have
I thought he should have taken Mickey off and move Bown up front being fed by Benrahma and Vlasic. Benny was rightly peeved at being taken off. He made 3 or 4 good runs that weren't spotted. We seemed to be waiting for Newcastle to give up the ball rather than trying to win it and do something. I actually went to bed with 5mins left as if there was gonna be a winner only one team were getting it. Thankfully they didn't, but this performance and many over the last few weeks have have opened the door nice and wide for the 3 teams below to overtake us in the next week or so, what with their games in hand starting to be played.