September 2023 – Under The Hammers

After Eights: Hammers Pressure Can Shatter Recently Humiliated Blades

West Ham look to return to winning ways in the league as arch-Tevezgate-rivals, Sheffield United visit London on the back of a humbling eight goal defeat last weekend.

The Hammers fast start to the Premier League season encountered its predictable stumble with consecutive defeats at home to Manchester City and away at Anfield. Although both performances had their creditable moments, the disappointing outcome of these games is invariably inevitable. Advantages are not pressed home and as the minutes tick away, legs tire, enterprise and belief fade, and it becomes a case of hanging on for dear life. Sadly, the more accomplished teams – as were the last two opponents – refuse to cooperate, typically underlining their superiority and confidence with a flurry of late goals.

Midweek action saw another victory for a West Ham second string XI when making heavy work of overcoming League One Lincoln City in the EFL Cup. The early rounds of this competition tend to have a phoney-war air about them. Premier League managers attempting to make it through to the business end of the competition while using as many fringe players as possible. In this context, it was job done at Sincil Bank and sets up an intriguing fourth round home encounter with Arsenal at the end of the month. After that, the numbers are down to eight teams and Wembley’s arch is firmly in sight.

This afternoon, West Ham return to league action with the visit of newly promoted Sheffield United. In my more pessimistic moments, I had identified this game as a first win of the season for the Hammers. But it now represents a potential opportunity to return to the top six – or at least to keep in touch with the chasing pack.

Last week’s events when the Blades were thrashed 8-0 at home by Newcastle has now put a very different complexion on the game. A side who had been leading Tottenham at the end of normal time the week before, were comprehensively demolished in front of their own supporters – largely the result of defensive incompetence of the highest order. The circumstances of that humiliation is sure to influence their approach to today’s fixture.

The Blades manager, Paul Heckingbottom – a man with the most northern sounding name ever – was given a vote of confidence by the club’s Saudi owner in the week and will understandably be cautious to avoid any repetitions in the coming games. Failure might cost him an arm and a leg. And it left me wondering how other clubs had fared in the aftermath of equivalent sound thrashings.

When Southampton were defeated 9-0 at home to Leicester in 2019/20 they managed to pull their socks up the following week but still lost by the odd goal in three on a visit to Manchester City. A year later, the Saints followed up a 9-0 thrashing at Old Trafford with a 3-2 defeat at Newcastle while last season, when Bournemouth went down by the same score at Liverpool, they recovered a modicum of respect with a goalless draw at home to Wolves. Closer to home, the week after losing 8-0 to West Ham at Upton Park in 1968/69, Sunderland bounced back a week later with a 3-0 home win over Coventry. If history teaches us anything it is that defeated sides will double down on their resilience – a flash of legendary Sheffield steel perhaps?

It is pointless to spend too much time in West Ham previews speculating on what changes David Moyes might make to tactics or personnel – unless it has been forced upon him by injury or suspension. You get the impression that changing the colour of his socks would be a revolutionary move for the Scot. But this is the kind of game that cries out for a change of approach.

Games where we would expect to see far more of the ball than usual, do not suit Michail Antonio’s bullying, barnstorming style of forward play – as we saw at Luton . It simply doesn’t work against opponents playing with packed or compact backlines, as we are likely to see today. When the challenge is to unlock a deep lying defence, then moving Jarrod Bowen into the middle with Mohammed Kudus replacing him wide right makes a lot more sense. A fluid attacking midfield three – supporting Bowen – comprising Kudus, Lucas Paqueta and James Ward-Prowse should pose plenty of problems to a defence short on confidence after their last outing.

The season so far has witnessed something of a renaissance for Thomas Soucek, a player who had been written off as a one-season wonder by a large section of the Hammer’s support. Whether it has been the departure of Rice or the arrival of Edson Alvarez that has allowed his game to focus back on his strengths is impossible to tell – but there is an obvious improvement in his demeanour. Time now to add league goals to those he has bagged in cup competitions.

In the defence, time must surely be running out before Nayef Aguerd is given a spell on the bench. High profile mistakes in both the Manchester City and Liverpool games has put his starting position in doubt now that Konstantinos Mavropanos has games under his belt. Moyes now has more options available and it is time he started using them – both in varying the starting eleven and making timely and effective substitutions. My preferred lineup would be: Areola, Coufal, Zouma, Mavropanos, Emerson, Alvarez, Soucek, Kudus, Ward-Prowse, Paqueta, Bowen.

If West Ham are to make any serious attempt to challenge the top six to eight, then this is a game they simply have to win. As they say, no game is ever easy in the league but playing at home against a dispirited opponent with just a single point to show for their efforts so far, is about as straightforward as they get. It will mean putting them under pressure from the first whistle and preventing them playing out from the back. An early goal and sustained pressure should make it a very uncomfortable afternoon for the visitors. West Ham to win 3-0. COYI!

Will the Blades be sharper when they visit the London Stadium this weekend or will West Ham return to winning ways?

It has been a decent start to the season hasn’t it? Who would have predicted that after the first six games we would be sitting in seventh place in the Premier League table having won three, drawn one and lost two, securing ten points. We’ve scored 11 goals in those games and conceded 10. The fixtures computer didn’t do us any favours in that just two of the six games have been at home with four away. That will be rectified with two home games in the next week.

In those six games we’ve faced the champions Manchester City, Liverpool, Brighton, Chelsea, Bournemouth and Luton. Hand on heart did you think we would have 10 points at this stage? We also won our first group game in the Europa League (comfortably in the end). General consensus is that the transfer window was a good one too, with the loss of Rice, balanced by the acquisition of Alvarez, Ward-Prowse, Kudus and Mavropanos. We could have done with another goalscorer though.

The manager is still under fire in some quarters despite our relatively impressive start. So why is this? If you delve deeper into the statistics of the six league games played a potentially worrying trend emerges in respect of the goals we are conceding. Our first half defensive performances reveal that we have conceded just twice in the opening 45 minutes. On the other hand our opponents have found the net eight times in the second period.

In many ways last week’s performance at Liverpool seemed to me to be very similar to the Manchester City game the week before. In both games we matched our illustrious opponents in the first half playing a more aggressive game before retreating deeper and deeper in typical Moyes fashion as the game progressed.

Our game plan seemed to invite more pressure in the second half. Do we do this on purpose (on manager’s orders) or do we run out of steam? The Bournemouth, Brighton and Luton games had some similarities with the concession of late goals too.

I read that the Liverpool defeat took David Moyes tally up to 72 games without a win in away games against Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United combined. Are there any other managers out there who have failed to beat those four teams in as many games as that on their travels? OK they are or have been top teams in recent times, but really you would have expected a win or two wouldn’t you? Nevertheless the season has begun relatively well and if we kick on in similar fashion then we will be looking towards the top half of the table.

After Sheffield United’s capitulation at home to Newcastle last week many of our fans writing on social media are expecting a straightforward win for us when the Blades come to town. Football often doesn’t work like that and I expect them to be more resilient at the London Stadium. They had done well in their previous game at Tottenham holding a 1-0 lead until the referee added 16 minutes to the second half. However I will be disappointed if we don’t take our points tally up to 13 this weekend.

Have you noticed that, including the Europa League game, five of our seven games this season have finished with a 3-1 scoreline (three in our favour and two against)? I’ll forecast that it will become six out of eight when we cut through the Blades defence to win the game 3-1. What are the chances?

Mersey Mission Impossible? West Ham and David Moyes Pay Another Visit To Anfield’s Unhappy Hunting Ground

Another test of the Hammer’s bright start to the season as they take on unbeaten Liverpool at Anfield. Will it be another pointless visit to Merseyside?

Midweek European group stage games can be something of a lottery. Opposition strengths and weaknesses are an unknown quantity and managers must try to balance progress in the group with the opportunity to rotate squad resources. In the end West Ham had enough quality to overcome the resistance of TSC despite an early setback, just as Liverpool and Manchester City had to in their respective games against LASK and Red Star Belgrade.

With David Moyes making nine changes from the eleven that had started the previous weekend it is impossible to draw any conclusions from Thursday’s victory other than suspecting that qualification from the group will be straightforward enough. The game saw useful debuts from Mohammed Kudus and Konstantinos Mavropanos both of whom should be pressing for Premier League starts in the coming months.

Thursday night’s game was not the most riveting of encounters. A lively start from the home side struggled to create clear-cut opportunities and they appeared to have lost their way before going behind in disastrous circumstances. A slip by Angelo Ogbonna compounding poor decision making when attempting to play the ball back to the keeper. At least it woke the Hammers up, but it would take a brace of James Ward-Prove set piece special deliveries to give the scoreline a respectable look.

The novelty of West Ham bossing possession is unlikely to be repeated at Anfield this afternoon where it will be a return to the counterattacking and set piece threats which have always represented the manager’s safe space. Liverpool are a very different, more direct proposition to the ball-loving sides that the Hammers have already faced – Chelsea, Manchester City and Brighton – and there are sound reasons to maintain a solid and compact defensive shape against them.

The Reds are unbeaten this season. In their previous two home games both Bournemouth and Villa allowed way too much space between defence and midfield which was exploited ruthlessly by the Liverpool forwards. The Hammer’s challenge will be denying space at one end while getting enough players forward quickly to create chances at the other.

West Ham’s shocking record at Anfield is legendary. A 3-0 victory in August 2015 being the solitary away win over in 60 years. The victory in 2015 was instrumental in Liverpool’s decision to replace Brendan Rodgers with Jurgen Klopp. Since Klopp’s appointment the record shows one draw and seven defeats for the Hammers – the last four all by a single goal margin. The statistics also show that Moyes has failed to win in 19 visits to Anfield as manager of four different clubs.

The predicted Hammers lineup today should show few changes from the side that lost out to Manchester City. Alphonse Areola will return between the sticks after his midweek rest. There may be a case to leave Nayef Aguerd on the bench following some unconvincing lapses, but I expect Moyes to stick with him for now. The manager will want to include both Edson Alvarez and Thomas Soucek as a defensive shield to counter the home side’s impressive attacking and aerial threat – and also to put pressure on Alisson at set pieces. With the more attack minded players selection will depend on the fitness of Jarrod Bowen who failed to make the midweek squad due to sickness. In his absence Kudus will fill in.

In this type of game there is no viable alternative to Michail Antonio in the lone striker role. With Danny Ings looking increasingly ineffective in the West Ham setup, the failure to bring in a new striker will surely cause a drag on performances until the oversight can be resolved. It is such a sharp contrast to the attacking talent available to Klopp who can select from Salah, Gakpo, Jota, Diaz, and Nunez.

It will require a battling West Ham performance to take anything from the game. We know that Moyes team are organised, disciplined, and resilient these days – and that they rarely fold like West Ham teams of old. However, they have yet to keep a clean sheet this season and will likely need to get on the scoresheet themselves in order to get a result. Can they do it? I’m hoping so provided the Anfield VAR behaves itself. A game with honours shared, I think. COYI!

Euro Veterans West Ham Are Backa On The Road To European Glory

The Hammers embark on a third successive season of European competition against the unknown Serbian league leaders from Backa Topola

In the natural order of things, West Ham would be about to embark on defence of their Europa Conference crown, won in Prague just a few short months ago. But in the world of UEFA competitions, as well as well a shiny trophy for the cabinet, comes the opportunity to compete on an even more prestigious stage of the Europa League.

Opinions vary on the progress made at the club during the time that David Moyes has been West Ham manager. But there is no getting away from the fact that it is a first for the Hammers to be competing in Europe over three consecutive seasons. The structure of the current competitions means that only a disastrous run of results can deny European football once again stretching into the new year – whether that is targeting a final in Dublin (for the Europa League) or Athens (for the Conference).

This season’s Europa League has a far stronger look to it than when West Ham last took part in 2021/22. Considering the English contingent of Brighton and Liverpool is daunting enough, and what chance of Manchester United and Newcastle joining in when the draw for the Round of 32 is made in late December.

On paper Group A shouldn’t represent the hardest of challenges although all three opponents have started their domestic leagues in good shape. The balancing act for Moyes is doing enough to win games while rotating his squad through the onerous Thursday – Sunday routine. Hopefully, the squad is strong enough in quantity and quality to cope with the demands.

First up in tonight’s Group opener at the London Stadium are TSC from Backa Topola in Serbia. They are making their second appearance in European competition having first competed in the Europa League in 2020/21. This season, they had originally qualified for Champions League qualifying on the back of a second place finish in the Serbian Superliga. Having lost their Third Qualifying Round tie to Braga of Portugal (7-1 on aggregate) they dropped down into the Europa League groups. They currently lead their domestic league ahead of Partizan and Red Star Belgrade.

It doesn’t feel like it will be a night of counterattacking football for the Hammers, so it will be fascinating to see how Moyes approaches the game. There must be a return for Lukasz Fabianski between the sticks and full debuts for Mohammed Kudus and Konstantinos Mavropanos. I also expect call-ups for most of Angelo Ogbonna, Thilo Kehrer, Aaron Cresswell, Pablo Fornals, Ben Johnson, and Danny Ings. Maybe even for the elusive Maxwell Cornet. No doubt Divin Mubama will feature at some point, but not as a starter.

Games such as these against unknown opposition are rarely as straightforward as we might hope, but it would be a huge upset if it doesn’t end in a West Ham victory. Breaking with recent tradition of not making score predictions, I will go for a 3-0 home win. COYI!

Respect All But Fear None: West Ham Belief Will Rest On The Courage Of Moyes Pep Talk

A huge top of the table clash sees England’s two European Champions lock horns at the London Stadium. Will the Hammers believe they can put an end to their long winless run against Manchester City?

Two of the Premier League’s unbeaten teams meet in a ‘top-of-the-table’ clash when champions Manchester City take on West Ham at the London Stadium this afternoon. The Hammer’s unexpectedly bright start raising the optics of the game from routine defeat to potential upset.

There are six sides yet to have tasted defeat in the embryonic table. The usual suspects of City, Liverpool, and Arsenal plus West Ham, Tottenham, and Brentford. As bookmaker odds for ending the season unbeaten are only available for the first three, there must be a different worthy cause for my 5-bob stake money.

As Richard pointed out in his article yesterday, Manchester City are a fantastic side but they are not invincible. Last season they lost five times in the league, including four while on their travels. Of those defeats, we should pay particular attention to the games against Brentford, who beat them both home and away. In concept, Thomas Frank’s approach to games last season was not too dissimilar to the Hammers. Both are well-drilled, direct, favour long balls to a target man and do not obsess about possession stats. The difference – apart from the suspended Ivan Toney probably being the best in the business at the target man role – is in the mental attitude of the two sides. Brentford play each game without any fear, regardless of opposition. West Ham over emphasise caution and pay far too much respect to the bigger teams – to the extent that they appear resigned to losing in many cases.

There is no problem in principle with setting up to be organised, resilient and hard to beat. But it was a philosophy that turned out very badly last season. Only Bournemouth and the three relegated clubs lost more games than West Ham. But that was then, and this is now. Moyes says he wants to achieve a balance between resilience and being expansive and time will tell how well that works out in practice.

It would be reckless for any team to be totally open and expansive against City – they have too many top-quality players to be gifted time and space in which to operate. But when possession is won, Moyes gameplan needs to ensure his side have plenty of bodies getting forward – that there are enough passing options – to keep hold of the ball and create goal-scoring opportunities. Simply clearing the lines in the hope that Michail Antonio can latch onto it occasionally will encourage wave after wave of opposition attacks. A tactic that only ends one-way against a side capable of producing goals from all over the pitch.

West Ham’s recent league record against the Champions is a miserable one. Since the last victory in September 2015, the winless run stands at 15 – with just three home draws in that time to boast of. If we also take account of Moyes generally poor managerial return in fixtures against top sides, then the omens are not good.

Having said that, the confidence in the Hammer’s squad must be sky high. The storming start to the season has exceeded all expectations and they will be determined to give a good account of themselves today, and next week at Anfield. The early signs suggest astute recruitment has enabled a return to the fast counter-attacking formula that worked so well in the 2020/21 season. The important thing is to maintain momentum and that can only be achieved with a plan that focuses as much on how to hurt the visitors as it does on stopping them playing. We have seen glimpses that the current squad know how to pass the ball slickly when given the opportunity, but it needs to be on show far more frequently.

Mental preparation may be the key to taking anything from the game. Ambition must be greater than hoping to keep a clean sheet and nicking one form a set piece. The attacking options now available in the squad are capable of posing problems and keeping the City defence occupied and unsettled throughout the afternoon – if allowed to. The game can’t be lost as soon as the two teams line up in the tunnel and, whatever the outcome, the visitors have to know they have been in a proper game.

Assuming everyone is fit and available the anticipated lineup is the one that started at Luton but with Thomas Soucek replacing Said Benrahma. I doubt Moyes will be able to resist the lure of the Czechs added height in the face of an expected City bombardment. I would love to see Mohammed Kudus feature from the start but fear 20 minutes or so is the best we will get. Hopefully, it is not too late by then. Similar some minutes from Konstantinos Mavropanos would also be appreciated.

The weakest link is defence today is likely to be at left back. Although I like the look of Emerson as a more adventurous wing-back, he is vulnerable aerially and to runners when asked to play in a more conventional defensive role. Where Vladimir Coufal is smart at using his body to block taller opponents, Emerson is regularly isolated and left compromised.

The visitors have an endless supply of talent to call on. It is ominous that they have had a strong start to the season when their speciality has been strong finishes. It would be no surprise if they went on to lift their fourth consecutive title at the end of the season. Can we give them something to think about? As a wise man once said: There is nothing to fear but fear itself …………. and Erling Haaland. COYI!

How can West Ham beat Manchester City this weekend?

While Manchester City has been a dominant and formidable team in recent years, no team is invincible and they can be beaten or stopped from winning. Upsets happen in football. If we have a well-thought-out game plan and execute it effectively then of course we have a chance. That is not to deny that it will be difficult against the best club side in England, Europe and probably the World. But they are not immune to defeats and do not win all the time. In their 19 Premier League games on the road on their way to yet another title last season they won 11, drew 4 and lost 4. That means that they didn’t win in 42 per cent of their away games.

Like any football team Manchester City can be beaten through a combination of strategies and factors, which do include luck. I think we can all guess David Moyes’ tactical approach to the game? It has been successful to date in this campaign but have we done our homework? We know their playing style but have we identified any weaknesses in their formation or strategy? Can we adjust our tactics to exploit these weaknesses? Make no mistake, as good as they are they do have weaknesses.

Four teams did beat City last season, Liverpool, Manchester United, Tottenham, and Brentford (twice – home and away!). I’d like to think that we have the resources to study all our opponents in detail but especially those games to try to understand how they were beaten and formulate our plans to achieve this ourselves. Also, there were five drawn games. How did Newcastle, Villa, Everton, Forest and Brighton avoid defeat in games against the champions? They do have areas of vulnerability. Can we capitalise on them? Can we exploit gaps in their defence, pressurise their midfield, disrupt their game plan and create opportunities to score ourselves?

A highly organised defence and disciplined marking are hallmarks of Moyes’ tactics. Narrow defending and numbers behind the ball are key elements that he believes in, with defenders who are able to deal with crosses all day, and hopefully limit shots to long range. Effective pressing can disrupt City’s attacking flow and limit their goal-scoring opportunities, but how deep will we try to defend? Despite our excellent start to the season we haven’t yet kept a clean sheet, conceding one goal in each of our four games. Late goals conceded (in the Bournemouth, Brighton and Luton games highlight the difficulty of maintaining defensive concentration for the full 90 (or 100) minutes. Areola has demonstrated why he is now Moyes’ number one choice and has already made numerous crucial saves. This game should be a real test.

Manchester City always dominate possession whereas our plan generally involves being happy to concede the ball. They attack in numbers and as a result could be susceptible to quick counter attacks. The key to this is the speed of the counter attacking which has been a key feature of our early games. Teams with fast, skillful players have exploited the spaces left behind by City’s attacking players and caught them off guard. Do we have the players who can emulate this? Antonio is a key component of our counter attacking strategy, but the pace of Benrahma and Bowen and the support from Ward Prowse are important too.

Set pieces such as free kicks and corners were a feature of our success a couple of seasons back, but much less so last time. Capitalising on these opportunities and utilising effective set-piece strategies can lead to goals and put Manchester City under pressure. In James Ward-Prowse we have now acquired a master of the set-piece delivery which has already proved fruitful. Also, in the past four games I have been itching to see us get a free kick around 20-25 yards from goal where he is second only to Beckham in his ability to score but alas it hasn’t happened. Perhaps in this game?

I’ve often wondered in the past if we have been fully mentally prepared in advance of games against the top sides. Moyes’ record as a manager in such games is not the best. Approaching the game with a positive mindset, belief in our abilities, and tactical discipline can and will make a difference. Confidence and focus are essential when facing a formidable opponent like City. The confidence in the team appears to be sky-high, perhaps as a result of winning a European trophy last season, and perhaps as a result of the key new signings to replace the loss of Rice. We haven’t yet seen the surprise element of potentially the most exciting signing of them all, Kudus. I have read articles suggesting that he can bring something extra to the team in the same way as Payet did a few years ago. If he can then that will be great, but we will see. Whether or not he will be unleashed from the beginning against City we don’t know yet.

Football is an unpredictable game. If you’ve supported West Ham for any length of time you’ll know that we can be unpredictable from one season to the next, from one game to the next, and even from the first half to the second half of a game. But upsets can happen. Our wins against Chelsea and Brighton were good examples of that. According to the bookmakers’ odds it would be an even bigger upset if we were to win this game. We are upwards of 6/1 to win whilst City are around 2/1 on, with the draw (which wouldn’t be the worst result for us) at 7/2.

While Manchester City are a strong team, perhaps the best around at the moment, and the toughest opponent we are likely to face this season, they are not unbeatable. Can we defy the odds? COYI!

What Do You Think Of It So Far: A Sign Of Great Things To Come Or Just A Lucky Start To The Season?

West Ham’s early season form has defied all expectations. Great signings and a return to the swashbuckling counterattack style of two years ago, or a few lucky breaks in the unpredictable opening exchanges of the new campaign?

If the Premier League season was a YouTube video then international breaks would be the annoying advertisements that pop up just as things are getting interesting to interrupt the flow, but without the ability to ‘skip’ after five seconds. And if you are hating this one, there are two more still to come before Christmas.

At least a break allows a moment to reflect on what has happened so far in West Ham’s embryonic season. I doubt even the most optimistic claret-and-blue spectacled Hammer would have forecast ten points from four games when the fixtures were first announced. But is this a springboard for a memorable campaign at home and in Europe, or is the current league position as good as it gets for the rest of the season? The upcoming matches against Manchester City and Liverpool are sure to put a more measured perspective on matters.

There are two schools of thought on the Hammer’s stellar start to the season – if internet chatter is anything to go by. And opinion is largely split depending on whether you are in the pro or anti David Moyes camp. Unfortunately, the loudest voices invariably originate from the extremes where everything is either black or white, yes or no, true or false.

The pro-Moyes camp view the start as a wholehearted endorsement of the Board’s decision to stick with the manager. The team has been strengthened by exciting new signings, is displaying a welcome return to the fast, counter-attacking style of two years ago, and have been good value for three excellent wins out of four. In the other corner, the Moyes-out camp see a typical early season distortion in the league standings. West Ham have been lucky. Chelsea should have buried us before half-time, Brighton had enough chances to have equalised, Luton are a terrible team and deserved a penalty at the end. We could just as easily be sitting bottom half with two or three points by now.

It would be wrong not to take at least a few of positives from the four games played, even if the sample size is way too small to make any bold predictions – I can still remember Carlisle United topping the old Division One at the start of the 1974/75 season and eventually getting relegated. But the team have started the campaign with confidence high, boosted by the success that comes with winning the Europa Conference. There is an excellent spirit in the squad, they are well drilled, and most importantly, they are getting more players forward (and more quickly) in support of counter attacks. Last season it took ten games to score the nine goals that have been buried so far.

The recruitment of James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez are looking to be inspired, great value signings. Michail Antonio, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta have started the season in blistering form. And there is more to come with anticipation of the delights that Mohammed Kudus and Konstantinos Mavropanos can bring to the table.

Naturally, being West Ham supporters, we are genetically programmed to expect everything to go horribly wrong at any moment. In that respect, the next three games will present fascinating insights.

Against Manchester City and Liverpool, we can expect classic Moyesball with narrow, compact defending and 20-something percent position. Success depends on whether the low-block defence is capable of snuffing out the abundant firepower both sides have available for an entire 90 minutes. And whether enough numbers are committed forward in support of counterattacks on the rare occasions the opportunity arises.

Defending narrow and getting numbers behind the ball does a fine job of closing down space between the lines, but it does allow opponents plenty of opportunity to ping in crosses and to shoot from range. They only need to get lucky once, as we saw with the Bournemouth equaliser in the season opener. While the current approach to defending persists there is little chance that Moyes will be weaned away from the ever-present Thomas Soucek. His defensive contribution – headed clearances and interceptions – should not be overlooked, but with the ball at his feet he is below top-half Premier League standard. Unless he returns to the goal scoring form of 2020/21 his net value to the team is questionable.

There is also a suspicion that the concentration levels required to defend with backs to the wall for extended periods will inevitably take its toll in terms of fatigue – especially with the manager’s tendency to delay substitutions for as long as possible. It was clear that Alvarez was tiring towards the end of the Brighton game and yet no relief was forthcoming until after the hosts scored. It may not be a coincidence that three of the four goals conceded to date have come in the last ten minutes.

The attacking strategy in these games is wholly dependent on the efforts of Antonio. At his best, it is easy to see why he unsettles defenders unaccustomed to opponents with such pace and power. But how long can he keep it up? Antonio delivered an equally impressive start to the 2021/22 season where he scored six times in the opening eight matches, but his ensuing lean spell coincided with the team’s lost momentum. It is astounding that no obvious replacement has been added to the squad.

The Sheffield United fixture will present a very different challenge. It is a game where West Ham will be expected to take the initiative. If there is a desire to play a more fluid frontline, then potentially this is the opportunity to do it. Perhaps by leaving Antonio on the bench with Bowen through the middle and Kudus coming in on the right. It was clear from the Luton game that Antonio’s style of play is far less effective when the team have more possession. I hope Moyes sees this as a chance to be less rigid in setting up for games where we should dominate the ball.

So far, West Ham have yet to suffer from any major VAR eccentricities – although the disallowed Emerson goal at Luton didn’t appear to receive the level of scrutiny often reserved for such events. In fact, many felt that VAR had done the Hammers a favour by not intervening in the Ward-Prowse ‘handball’ incident in the closing seconds at Kenilworth Road. Personally, I never regarded handball as a particularly contentious issue in the good old pre-VAR days. But in their wisdom PGMOL have made it so with a dog’s breakfast implementation – both from an attacking and defending point of view – that now nobody really understands the rules – just like in Rugby Union. COYI!

Luton Intolerance: Multitasking Matchday Madness For Moyes and his Men in the Friday Night Game

West Ham travel to Luton with a chance of returning to the Premier League summit for another 24 hours. But will the action on the pitch be overshadowed by the last knockings of the transfer window?

Pineapple and pizza; football and Friday. Neither belong anywher near each other. What might have been OK for a Division 4, Southend United versus Northampton Town clash in the 1960s to get a few more punters through the turnstiles, is an abomination in the Premier League. Friday Night’s Not Alright for Football!

These days, I am no more enamoured with Monday night games either. What had started out as a major televised event is now largely used (like Fridays) to satisfy TV quota obligations for the live coverage of teams who generate little interest outside their own fan base. When your team doesn’t play on Saturday or Sunday there is a sense exclusion – overlooked in summaries of the weekend talking points, and ruled out of Garth Crooks team of the week – although the latter is de-rigueur for West Ham players.

This particular evening’s scheduling is the perfect storm of sensory overload for Hammers followers. Especially those unable to cope with the challenges of multitasking. First, to keep an eye on the Where’s Tim ™ mobile tracking app to discover where in the world Technical Director, Tim Steidten will pop up next to complete those much needed last gasp signings. Second, to interrogate Skyscanner, working out the best routes and cheapest deals on flights to Baku, Molde, Częstochowa, or wherever the UEFA suits decide this season’s Europa League group stage games will lead us. Third, to prepare for the small matter of a Premier League fixture against plucky Luton Town and eagerly awaiting team news. Which of the new signings will be starting? How many keepers will David Moyes have on the bench?

We are promised a cauldron so intense and raucous at Kenilworth Road tonight that not a single person will be able to hear the transfer window slamming shut.

Pre-match chatter for the game will be dominated by anticipation of Luton’s first topflight home match since they were relegated along with West Ham in 1992. Just our luck that once again the Hammers are cast as the supporting act for the big attraction. Pundits will be gushing over the Hatters unbelievable rags to riches story. How the phoenix rose from the ashes and how fans must access the stadium through someone’s pantry. Of course, it is a great story but not every fairy-tale has a happy ending.

During the 1980s and early 1990s Luton were a recurring thorn in West Ham’s side, unable to get to grips with the plastic pitch that was laid between 1985 and 1991. In their last 21 games against Luton (all competitions), the Hammers have come out on top only four times. A Luton side comprising such luminaries as Ricky Hill, Brian Stein, Mark Stein, Colin Foster, Mick Harford and (of course) Tim Breacker would even go on to win the 1988 League Cup, defeating Arsenal in the final at Wembley.

The last meeting with Luton was a sixth-round tie in the 1994 FA Cup campaign. A goalless draw at Upton Park was followed by a replay at Kenilworth Road a week later where three strikes to heaven from Scott Oakes saw First Division Luton pull off a giant killing against Premier League West Ham by three goals to two.

The expected Hammers starting line up today should be much the same as the one starting the second half at Brighton last Saturday. Konstantinos Mavropanos and Tomas Soucek are ruled out while Moyes will need to decide if more pace is required in the centre of defence than Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna can offer. Nayef Aguerd is an option after serving his one match suspension.

The manager’s new signing protocol will ensure Mohammed Kudus starts the game on the bench until he comes on to replace Said Benrahma at the 70-minute mark. I’m really excited at the prospect of seeing Kudus and Lucas Paqueta lining up together.

There is a smattering of former Hammers to be found in the Luton squad. Reece Burke made 15 appearances in claret and blue between 2014 and 2018 before finding his way to Luton via Hull City. Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu had one League Cup outing as a Hammer prior to moving to Luton where he has featured throughout their rise from National to Premier leagues. Finally, Dan from the Potts dynasty has been at Luton since 2015 but is unfortunately injured at the present time. Potts made 12 West Ham appearances.

The passion of the occasion will ensure a fiercely competitive game which will be a fascinating test of the Hammer’s credentials. Are we witnessing a renaissance of Moyesball, or were the last two wins a coincidental blip? The victories over Chelsea and Brighton saw a return to the faster form of the manager’s counterattacking style that was a feature of the 2020/21 season. More players getting forward and better goal scoring positions engineered. It clearly worked well against two teams desperate to dominate possession, but how will it pan out against teams equally prepared to play without the ball, like Luton. This was where Moyesball floundered previously. The lack of guile and creativity unable to open up organised and compact defences. Maybe the presence of Paqueta, Kudus, and James Ward-Prowse can ask more testing questions this time around.

What happens off the pitch today may be far more important in defining the Hammer’s season than the game itself. If the window fizzles out without additional striker options and without upgrading the full/ wing back positions, then another opportunity will have been missed – just as it was in the January window of 2022. It is quite baffling how it has come down to the final hours to resolve such significant deficiencies. A West Ham would take them back to the top of the table. A second one day spell at summit until Manchester City play Fulham on Saturday afternoon. Another screenshot captured for posterity. Make it happen. COYI!