You don't get to manage over 1,000 top flight professional football games without picking up at least some degree of nous, after all you can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time can you?
Well it seems that Hammers erstwhile 'leader' seems to think he can given his recent team selections and their complete lack of motivation! Now it is very easy for a 'keyboard warrior' to criticise from afar bereft of what is really going on, if that is the case regarding this article then we can only offer the most heartfelt of apologies.
However unfortunately Moysie, the Moyesasaurus or even the Moyesiah as he has been called must surely know that this is the beginning of the end, or to paraphrase Churchill, at least the end of the beginning! Most managers will refer to injuries and suspensions as a reason for a tragic loss of form, but the Hammers manager knows that excuse would be lame to say the least.
Moyes DOES have a superb squad with strength in depth, not only that he has access to a raft of academy players most managers would cut their arms off for, but for some reason he seems to be obsessed with 'converting' players from their natural position into ones that are not!
It may have originally been because he didn't have the players available, like when he managed at Preston and Everton, it may have been part of a recipe or cunning plan to fool the opposition, but with the Hammers all it does is confuse the players and lead to wholesale disenfranchisement.
Moyes has had a good innings, winning the Conference League Cup last season was surely the height of his managerial achievements and one that he can be immensely proud of, but 'the times they are a changing' and Moyes' old school approach has been creaking at the edges for a very long time. The victory over Fiorentina masked what had been a general malaise domestically but 'earned' Moyes the right to see out the final year of his contract, winning the club's first major trophy in over 40 years takes some doing after all.
The point is though that Moyes 'peaked' with the victory and really should have left the club with his head held high before the new season, whereas now he is in deep danger of having to leave with his head held half way up his backside!
No one apart from the manager knows his plans for the future, let alone his plans for tonight's game against Arsenal. His usual plan A is to let players who have little or no game time have a 'run out' while keeping his 'big guns' on the bench in case they are needed. The problem with that approach is that players who have had little or no game time tend to 'overtry' when given the opportunity and do NOT play their natural game.
Moyes might as well start his 'strongest' team tonight against Arsenal in the League Cup because the next domestic fixture will see two of the club's best players unavailable due to their having amassed too many yellow cards!
Fans hoping to see Divin Mubama or Callum Marsahll will most likely be disappointed, it is NOT Moyse's way to 'blood' youngsters, possibly one of the main reasons Mubama has decided against signing a new contract or extending his existing one and who can blame him? Seeing Danny 'Uncle' Ings start ahead of him must surely show that the youngster has no future at the club while Moyes is in charge!
Miracles do happen, but tonight is most likely not the night to witness one....Ed
Comments
I'm expecting
Paqueta and Alvarez to start given that they'll be having a rest against Brentford. And I'm expecting a trumping. But I do hope (if he'playing) that we don't give Rice a hero's welcome back. It was HIS choice to leave us, unlike the likes of Johnson, Carrick, Rio etc.
Have to disagree there. I
Have to disagree there. I hope Rice does get a brilliant reception. He pretty much single handed got us to a stage where we were something once again.
The conference cup was the icing on the cake. Rice always gave everything for the cause and never once moaned or criticised anyone. He was the face of West Ham, always meeting the young Hammers and loving every minute of it.
I do not begrudge Rice anything. He merely wanted to progress his career and had gone as far as he could with us. I'm sure his mentor Mark Noble said, don't be like me, move on, progress. One day you'll be England Captain, I for one hope he does...
Agree with that Boogers
Why did he leave? well the club have no ambition is the honest truth and just happy to stay in the league and get the tv money year in year out do enough so we are just marginally better than at least 5 other teams so as not to get relegated.
We had an terrible season last year and were saved by the miracle of Prague! the board know it we know it even Moyes knows it and a turning point in our history had arrived but as always we are West Ham and we do not push on we are like a boat slowly sinking just about enough buckets to bale the water out and keep afloat barely.
Moyes should of had his contract paid up and let Tim install a new man but of course Sullivan was never going to do that.
Rice coming back i do not have a problem with Keeping Moyes on i do.
So we'll articulated boogers
So we'll articulated boogers & bike ,can add nothing to that ,the hardest part of your separation from your beloved west ham is over now Declan, you've payed your first visit back ,you'll be in the top five in the world.
Bellingham
Is well ahead of him for Captain of England
Rift
I'm thinking there's discontent within the team for whatever reason. The sudden shift in form doesn't add up. In every aspect of our game against Everton we were dire. We'd have struggled against anyone.
So agree Sussex , supporting
So agree Sussex , supporting west ham is like trying to work out how big the universe is, best not to think too much.