Never Mind The Opposition-Who Ever They Are

Ahead of Hammers away game against Leeds today, there seems to have been an inordinate amount of coverage in the build up given to the fitness and availability of several key players for the home team. A day hasn't gone by without some news emanating from Elland Road about this player and that and whether they can make the 1st team.

Painful experiences of the past will surely have taught fans NOT to read too much into these 'snippets' for a couple of reasons, namely NO ONE gets anywhere near a 1st team without having earned the right, and no manager demands more from their players than Leeds' Marco Biesla. His famous training methods, referred to as 'murder ball' by his players, should be indicative as to what he demands from his team.

Consequently most of the coverage about who is and who isn't available to face West Ham, is vacuous to put it mildly. Whichever team Bielsa sends out will give it their all, Hammers will need to be on full alert as they try to cope with Leeds' frenetic fast paced game.

This fixture has added significance for David Moyes, a win or a draw will 'cement' Hammers upward trajectory towards being regular top six contenders, anything else won't be the end of the world, but it won't be the best of beginnings.- Ed