DAVID MOYES is in denial – his West Ham team are bang in trouble with the Hammers having a 2022 to forget.
The East London club have undeniably had two-and-a-half good seasons on paper under the Scotsman.
He saved West Ham from relegation, followed it up with consecutive sixth and seventh-placed finishes, and a Europa League semi-final.
However, the European run, in particular, has masked the Hammers’ dismal league form in the last calendar year.
West Ham have won just 11 Premier League games in 35, and from April they’ve managed just five wins in their last 23.
For further context, those 11 wins came against: Crystal Palace, Norwich X2, Watford, Wolves X2, Aston Villa X2, Everton, Fulham and Bournemouth.
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That’s five wins against relegated or newly promoted opposition, and six wins against teams that finished middle of the pack, or near bottom.
West Ham’s once impressive counter attacking style had been found out, and manager Moyes needed to change the Hammers’ style in order to sustain their push up the table.
And so the ex-Manchester United boss signed off on £161million worth of talent last summer, most of which played on mainland Europe.
Starting Brazil midfielder Lucas Paqueta, Italian internationals Gianluca Scamacca and Emerson, Moroccan ace Nayef Aguerd, Germany’s Thilo Kehrer, Burnley main man Maxwel Cornet, World Cup winner Alphonse Areola and lifelong Hammer Flynn Downes all arrived at the London Stadium.
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Such signings suggested that West Ham wanted more of the ball in 2022/23.
Instead, they’ve seen their share of possession drop from 48 per cent to 44, their defensive line drop considerably deeper than that of last season and they’re one of the most passive-pressing teams in the division.
They roll out the welcome mat for opposition players to progress towards the 18-yard box, they surrender possession in 50 per cent of zones of the pitch while controlling just over 16 per cent – most of which are inside their own penalty area.
And before the World Cup break, such a conservative approach left Moyes’ men floating JUST above the relegation zone following an away loss to Man Utd and two losses in “winnable” home games to Palace and Leicester.
The six-week stoppage for the winter tournament was arguably the best opportunity the West Ham hierarchy were going to get to twist and bring in a new manager with fresh ideas.
They instead stuck with Moyes, and in the eyes of many it was the right decision.
The board decided against making changes, which Moyes could not afford to follow, but DID so anyway.
Before the restart of West Ham’s Premier League campaign on Boxing Day away at league leaders Arsenal, Moyes’ denial reached a new level when he claimed on talkSPORT that his team were in a “European battle” and not a relegation battle.
Nice fighting talk – but the performance at the Emirates to follow was far too passive and the defeat far too predictable despite leading at half-time through a Said Benrahma penalty.
Moyes’ inferiority complex against a “Big Six” side backfired, as it always has, as Martin Odegaard picked the Hammers apart and extended the Scotsman’s winless run on the road against England’s best as West Ham manager to 26.
To make matters worse, they’ve won just four points from an available 78 against the big boys, so whatever the game plan is, it HASN’T worked, ISN’T working and WON’T work going forward.
West Ham’s form isn’t a cause for concern for captain Declan Rice either, who appears to be too cool for school these days.
Like Moyes, he doesn’t feel West Ham are in a relegation battle “at all” and described the Hammers’ form as a “blip”, but a “blip” surely doesn’t last over a year.
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Rice’s tune could soon change should his team fall to a defeat at home to Brentford on Friday – a team they’ve not beaten in the Premier League – or perhaps when his team are staring down the barrel of back-to-back-to-back games against Newcastle, Chelsea and Tottenham in February.
A fifth-straight league defeat later this week should see Moyes be left in 2022 and a new chapter begin under new management, who has the tactical nous to meet the demands of the ever-changing ambitions in East London.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
