WEST HAM expert Andrew Dillon gives you the inside track on the doomed reign of Manuel Pellegrini.
The Chilean boss was axed after a horror run of nine Prem defeats in 12 games.
Pellegrini was axed on Saturday night after a run of two wins in 14 gamesCredit: Getty – Contributor
But his authority has long been questioned — including skipper Mark Noble losing his rag over training methods…
TRAINING
THE Chilean, 66, organised his squad into two teams of 11 for a full-on training ground practice match around a month ago.
It was designed to replicate the upcoming match and give the West Ham players a chance to work on the tactics that would reboot a leaky defence, turn around the wobbly form — and begin the long climb back up the Premier League table.
Barely half an hour into the training match the score was 4-4 because the tactics were so open.
Insiders at the club have told SunSport how the cavalier approach to a full-on practice game proved too much for West Ham’s long-serving captain Mark Noble.
A source said: “Noble just suddenly stopped the game in its tracks, picked up the ball and went for it.
“He told everybody in no uncertain terms that this was precisely why they were losing every week.
Skipper Mark Noble grew frustrated by his boss’ tacticsCredit: Getty – Contributor
“Nobes will run through walls for his managers but never forget this is a bloke who bleeds claret and blue.
“Nobody believes in West Ham more than him, so if he was pushed this far it must have been a big issue.”
TRANSFERS
MANUEL PELLEGRINI and his right-hand man Mario Husillos ignored the advice of their West Ham colleagues — and it helped to seal their fate.
First-team boss Pellegrini and sporting director Husillos insisted on signing hopeless goalkeeper Roberto, while talent spotters in the technical department analysed videos and data before passionately urging the club to go for Huddersfield’s Jonas Lossl — now at Everton — instead.
It turned out that by signing error-prone Roberto the defiant and stubborn pair were helping to sign their own death warrants.
The goalkeeping situation has been the centrepoint of West Ham’s problems this season.
Injury to brilliant first-choice keeper Lukasz Fabianski meant Roberto was thrown in — and he failed to keep a clean sheet in any of his seven games.
The decision to sign calamity keeper Roberto over Jonas Lossl has proved a costly oneCredit: AFP or licensors
Yet even from the start of his ill-fated 18 months in charge, Pellegrini’s transfer policy had his West Ham superiors scratching their heads.
The goalkeeper calamity was a high-profile clanger but signing midfielder Jack Wilshere just three months after Pellegrini took over had alarm bells ringing in the boardroom.
Senior sources at the club were mystified Pellegrini was hell-bent on spending around £5million a year in wages on the former Arsenal man with a long history of injury.
But because it was so early in his reign, the top brass felt duty bound to back their manager.
They hoped Pellegrini would finally be the coach who could get a consistent run of matches out of the undoubtedly talented but fragile one-time England man.
But there are duds throughout the dressing room.
Swiss striker Albian Ajeti cost £8m in the summer and is yet to score or threaten the opposition goal when he is supposed to be back up to Sebastian Haller.
Fed-up fans came up with this song on Saturday while watching their beloved Hammers surrender against Leicester’s reserves: “Woah oh, we’ve got Carlos Sanchez, woah oh, we’re better off with deckchairs, woah oh, I don’t think we could give him away, 1 2 3 4.”
Fans at West Ham have become disillusioned with their sideCredit: Getty – Contributor
TACTICS
THERE was a widespread belief in the camp that Pellegrini took his eye off the opposition.
He spent the majority of match preparation on what his team could do, vastly underestimating the ability of the opposition — when even the bottom clubs in the Premier League all have incredibly talented players.
West Ham’s 3-2 home defeat by Newcastle in early November is viewed by many as when there was no way back.
The team started with a 5-4-1 formation and players came off at half-time claiming they were running into each other because there was no space in midfield.
TEMPERAMENT
IT IS difficult to find anybody at West Ham with a bad word to say about Pellegrini — but that was a major factor in his downfall.
Managers are widely regarded as Marmite at their clubs.
They are loved or hated. The players they pick adore the boss, those left rotting on the bench cannot stand him.
Pell’s passive personality meant there was no internal spark to try to reignite West Ham when things went pear-shaped on the pitch.
A club insider said: “Apart from the odd moment where you were lucky to catch Manuel geeing up the players on the way out of the dressing room for the second half, he was the same man — win, lose or draw.
“Nobody disliked him. He is a gentleman.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
