Lifting The Lid On The Moyesball Paradox Of Dreary Football And Europa Success

It was interesting to hear David Moyes pre-match comment that although not personally worried about his current contract situation, he feared it might unsettle the players. Always good to get the excuses in early. His assumption, I guess, is that these highly paid professionals would be distraught at the thought of playing under new management. Moyes added that what he needed to focus on was picking up enough points to keep the Board happy.

Like many supporters I have this ongoing dilemma with Moyesball. It’s an internal conflict of never wanting West Ham to lose any game, but with an (apparently) delusional desire to be entertained in the process. It is the entertainment element that is generally overlooked outside those fans who regularly watch matches. It seems we should be grateful for any small crumbs of success that come our way even if the football is invariably dull and dreary. So, you get the situation where a pundit such as Jeff Stelling berates a West Ham supporter for wanting Moyes replaced, telling him he needs to ‘get a grip on reality’. Maybe the reality is that West Ham should be doing much better given the investment that has been made in the squad. Of course, there is no way that Moyes will lose his job before the end of his contract, but speculation will persist on whether a contract extension is conceivable.

If Moyes should leave in the summer, then the record books will show a respectable legacy from his time at West Ham. By almost all metrics, the 2020/21 season was the Hammer’s best ever in the Premier League. Most points, most wins, best goal difference and providing the sixth-place finish that would kick-start three consecutive seasons of European football. And then there was the success in last season’s Europa Conference that brought the club its first trophy in 43 years. In summary, that is not too shabby and, of course, this season is not yet over.

What the record books have no interest in, though, is the quality or style of football played during that time. And that is where the majority of disgruntled supporters take issue. Games are endured rather than enjoyed and results have rarely been good enough to gloss over that fact. Indeed, it has only been the European adventures that have served as Moyes ‘get out of jail free card’ over the past two seasons as domestic form flatlined.

The success of 2020/21 carried over into the early months of following season and after beating Crystal Palace on New Years Day 2022 the Hammers were handily placed in fifth spot. But then things started to change.  They were no longer a surprise package; opponents knew exactly how they wanted to play and were able to put a stop to the threat of rapid counterattacks. The opportunity to strengthen the squad in January was missed and both performances and results began to fall away. As the opportunity for breakaways receded the tactics lost their shine and simply looked negative.

An analysis of league form over two years since that Palace game, shows West Ham’s record as Played 72, Won 24, Drawn 14, and Lost 34. That’s a measly win percentage of 33% with an unremarkable average of 1.2 points per game. Is there no-one else who could have done better?

Throughout this time, Europe has continued to paper over the cracks. Excellent performances against Sevilla and Lyon and victory over Fiorentina in Prague being the standout moments. It would be wrong to belittle the European experience but equally going over the top about winning group games verges on embarrassing. With the exception of Freiburg, all opposition has come from the continent’s lower ranked leagues – Croatia, Belgium, Austria, Denmark, Rumania, Serbia, and Greece. Any competent (and expensively assembled) Premier League side that took the competition seriously would be expected to come out on top. A team can only beat what’s in front of you but let’s not overegg the achievement. Even in the upcoming knockout round, West Ham should be easily among the favourites to make it through to the last eight.  

All that said, it was a fine professional performance on Thursday to secure top spot in Group A. The Hammers proving that when allowed to, they can play some decent football. The tie wrapped up by two excellent goals from summer signings Mohammed Kudus and Edson Alvarez. I must admit I had pigeon-holed Alvarez as the typical defensive midfield destroyer and was both surprised and impressed by his contribution with the ball. All I had to go on were memories of him spooning long shots well over the bar earlier in the season.

In truth, Freiburg didn’t offer much and allowed West Ham far too much space in which to express themselves. It is maybe indicative of the strength in depth – and the amount of money available – in the Premier League compared to the Bundesliga.

The return to league action todays sees Wolverhampton Wanderers visit the London Stadium. Wolves have stabilised under the management of former Hammer Gary O’Neil and occupy a comfortable mid-table spot, thanks mainly to their impressive home form. The visitors will be without primary dangerman Neto, but Hwang and Cunha have been regularly finding the net. I watched them beat Tottenham a few weeks ago and was impressed by the way Lemina was able to boss the midfield.

Should West Ham beat Wolves today then they will be slightly better off than at the equivalent stage of 2020/21. On the other hand, they would now be below Everton had the Toffees not received a ten point penalty. A late run to qualify for Europe through league position seems unlikely however, especially in light of Moyes belief that he doesn’t need additional striking options. It will be interesting to see if any transfer activity takes place in January as it will undoubtedly be influenced by the manager’s contract position. The success of Kudus and Alvarez will surely have strengthened Tim Steidten’s hand in the leadership of future transfer business.

From Moyes point of view, his best chance of influencing the Board would be to win another trophy and extend the European adventure into a fourth season as a result. In that respect, he may view Wednesday’s league cup tie at Anfield as his most important pre-Christmas challenge. Whether that means resting a few of his favourites today will only be revealed once the teams are announced. We must wait and see.

More than anything I would hope to see more of the movement, space creation and interchange that we witnessed in the second half at Tottenham – and again on Thursday night. And without the lack of defensive discipline on show at Fulham. There are now enough talented players in the squad to break free of the Moyesball shackles, but will it be allowed to happen. COYI!