Category: Preview

I may have mentioned this before but my very first visit to Upton Park was to watch a game against Fulham.  It was in March 1961 and in the immediate aftermath of Ted Fenton being mysteriously sent home on sick leave – just before his eventual sacking and replacement by Ron Greenwood.  A disappointing 2-1 defeat set the tone nicely for the ensuing sixty years or so.

A dark secret from back then was that I inexplicably believed that Bubbles included the line ‘Fortune’s always hiding, lilacs everywhere’.  Perhaps not the most amusing of misheard lyrics but it was refreshing to hear that the current multi-lingual squad had managed a better grasp of the words – as they serenaded Manuel Lanzini’s at his 26^th   birthday bash during the annual ‘knocked out the cup early’ warm weather holiday in Marbella.  With a perception that the team usually returns from such breaks with a lethargic holiday hangover all eyes will be on what is served up for us tonight.

Of all the spectator unfriendly, moved for the TV schedules, kick-off times, it is the Friday night one that I dislike the most.  Friday night is for unwinding at the end of the working week with a meal and a drink – it is not meant for football and has the added disadvantage of leaving the rest of the weekend free to be roped into other duties such as shopping or garden related activities.  The weekend doesn’t start here but ends before it has even started!

The season has a serious danger of fizzling out to nothing unless an inspired run for seventh place can be somehow pulled out of the hat.  A straw poll of fellow supporters suggests a 10^th to 12^th finish is closer to expectations – which, for me, would represent a failure (by the club as a whole) based on where it sits in the money league.

Tonight’s opponents would, no doubt, bite your arm off at the prospect of mid-table obscurity but, regardless of the outcome tonight, it is difficult to see them lasting long enough to have a shot at second season syndrome.  Maybe attempting such a major squad renovation in the summer was a flawed strategy and perhaps they were too quick to jettison the manager who had earned them promotion.  Bringing in Ranieri was an odd choice given that he is hardly the type of inspiring character needed in a relegation dogfight.  He will dine out on his ‘serendipitous’ title winning season at Leicester forever but will most likely soon have a matching relegation honour to balance it out.

Reports have it that several of the Hammer’s long term injured (Lanzini, Fabian Balbuena and Samir Nasri) could be in the frame to play a part in today’s game.  It is unlikely that any will be making a start but may well feature from the bench.  If there are any changes to the eleven that started at Selhurst Park then it would be Pablo Zabaleta returning in place of Ryan Fredericks and Marko Arnautovic replacing Javier Hernandez.

Although I can understand why supporters might be a little miffed following Arnautovic’s antics during the transfer window, he is the only player in the squad capable of playing effectively as a lone striker.  Manuel Pellegrini may, of course, opt to play with two strikers but that would leave the team woefully short in midfield numbers and energy – even against a side with Fulham’s limitations.  The reservation with Arnautovic, though, is that, based on the evidence of the footage from Spain, he looked to be carrying a little extra weight than ideal.

The Friday night referee is Lee Mason from Lancashire who was last seen at the London Stadium in December for the defeat against Watford.

The usual pundits are unanimous in their prediction of a West Ham win; with Merson going for 3-1 against Lawro’s 2-0.  The Hammer’s consistent inconsistency over the years might have prepared us for any eventuality and many a team looking to end a miserable run of away results has frequently found West Ham to be charitable hosts.  However, even if the visitors press and harry in midfield to upset the Hammer’s rhythm their defence is so shocking that it would seem impossible not to score.    One of the most memorable West Ham victories over Fulham that I have seen was a 7-2 win in February 1968 – a game that featured a rare compendium of goals from Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, Trevor Brooking and Martin Peters (plus one from Brian Dear).  It would be most agreeable to witness something similar this evening to make up for a spoiled weekend.

It was, I believe, Brendan Rodgers, who first talked about ‘being in the conversation’ referring to his side’s ultimately unsuccessful attempt to win the Premier League in the 2013/14 season.  The phrase has since been picked up by a host of commentators and pundits who might say (laughably, I know) that Tottenham are ‘in the conversation’ as far as this year’s title is concerned or else may debate who ‘is in the conversation’ for this season’s player of the year award – entries, of course, limited to those appearing for a top six club.

It made me wonder whether West Ham were likely to appear in any conversation any time soon.  Perhaps, and with some justification, which is the most injury prone team in the league or, maybe, which is the most inconsistent?  Ideally, it would be who is the conversation to finish best of the rest and end up snatching a Europa Cup spot.  A great deal more consistency would be required to make that a reality!

There were so many plaudits following the Monday night performance against Liverpool that it is difficult to remember that West Ham didn’t actually win the game.  Perhaps they would have gone on to do so had it not been for Simon The-One-Eyed Linesman.  Klopp came in for a lot of criticism for his post-match rant about the officials but he is not the first manager to be found spouting bollocks in the heat of the moment.  To his credit he still took time to congratulate both sets of players as they left the field at the end of the game.

Exactly how the same team that performed so feebly against Wimbledon and Wolves managed to raise their game to such an extent against Liverpool continues to defy logic.  It would seem to suggest that there are or have been some serious attitude issues within the squad.  Any clues as to whether these have now been put behind them will be on show when they take the field against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park this afternoon.  Since winning at Southampton, just after Christmas, it is now four straight away defeats (including cup) on the bounce, serving to balance out the recent improvement in results at the London Stadium.

Even though, as one of the top twenty richest clubs in the world, we may like to see ourselves as knocking on the top six door along with other moneyed pretenders such as Everton and Newcastle, the reality in recent season has been one of tussles with the likes of Palace and Southampton in the lower to middle reaches of the league.  In the five seasons since Palace returned to the Premier League, the Eagles have finished above the Hammers on three occasions.  With only two places, but six points, separating the two teams, it would be a major disappointment if that scenario happened again.

The main selection dilemmas for Manuel Pellegrini are whether Marko Arnautovic returns following several weeks out with the sulks and whether Ryan Fredericks keeps his starting berth or is replaced by Pablo Zabaleta.  Everyone had a decent game on Monday but the manager still needs to pick his strongest team – the ancient concept of not changing a (nearly) winning team is a dated one in the modern game.  Despite Javier Herndandez putting in one of his better non-scoring displays, Arnautovic has far more to offer in the lone striker role.  If there was one thing clear from the Liverpool game it was that the team are much more compact and with better shape when there are more bodies in midfield – with current personnel two strikers just doesn’t work.  Fredericks would be unlucky to lose his place but I expect Zabaleta to get the nod.

As for Palace, it seems that Zaha has been given a suspended suspension so that he can play today despite an extra match ban following his dismissal for making fun of the referee.  Perhaps in the circumstances he should be electronically tagged during the game both to monitor his whereabouts and his outrageous diving – a sort of Simulation Assistant Referee based on the ‘Tilt’ functionality of old style pinball machines.

The danger for West Ham looks to be down the Palace right flank where the marauding Wan-Bissaka (surely in the conversation for young player of the year alongside Declan Rice) and one of the league’s top chance creator, Andros Townsend, will need to be carefully marshalled.  With Pellegrini’s preference for the high line and narrow defending it is a cause for concern that it may allow even Benteke or Batshuayi to find opportunities to score.

The match-day referee is Craig Pawson from South Yorkshire.  Pawson was in charge of that most recent West Ham away win at Southampton.  He started the season with a flurry of red cards but has since calmed down a little.

Of the pundits, Lawro is convinced by a 1-1 draw while Merson has become frustrated by the Hammer’s inconsistency and foresees a 1-0 home win.  I always believe that these encounters will have goals in them and fancy at least four or more this afternoon.  For the Hammers to triumph, it will need the same intensity and application that we saw on Monday.    We can’t always rely on Felipe Anderson and Declan Rice to drag us over the line and it will require others such Angelo Ogbonna, Issa Diop and Aaron Creswell to stay on high alert and play at the top of their game.  Support to Cresswell down our left will also be vital.  Assuming all of that can be delivered I am going for a 3-2 to the Hammers repeat of the December score.

You start to see the pressure on football managers when things start to go wrong. After an uninspiring draw against Leicester, most people fully expected Liverpool to bounce back and see off an out of form West Ham on Monday evening. But the Hammers being the Hammers lived up to their reputation of consistent inconsistency. How could a team who performed so miserably as to be dumped out of the FA Cup by lowly AFC Wimbledon, and then play even more abjectly (some would argue) against Wolves, possibly be a match for top of the table Liverpool? It is an easy one to answer. As I have written so many times before, with West Ham you never know what you are going to get. It is the West Ham way!

Considering how out of touch we had been in the matches leading up to this we performed admirably. It is hard enough to take on the top of the table team anyway without being subjected to one of the most appalling offside decisions (or rather lack of decision) that you will ever see. We were easily holding our own, and probably had the upper hand in the game when Milner, clearly in an offside position, received the ball from Lallana. He crossed to Mane who turned and scored. I’ve been writing about the need for VAR for years, and in this case, the “goal” would have comfortably been chalked off. But worse than that is the failure of the linesman to be able to see it with his eyes. Sometimes offside decisions can be difficult to call, and you cannot blame the linesman when the human eye only has fractions of inches to differentiate between offside and not offside. But this was not one of those occasions. The linesman seemed more interested in watching Lallana’s skill on the ball and found himself in the wrong position. Shocking.

What I found just as bad was the decision (or lack of it again) in the third minute of time added on, when the other linesman did not raise his flag when Origi was also clearly offside and should have put the ball in the net to win the match. That would have really compounded the injustice, but fortunately the Liverpool substitute demonstrated why he isn’t in the starting eleven.

But perhaps the most appalling aspect of the poor decisions made by the officials was listening to Klopp afterwards complaining about the referee favouring West Ham! In my opinion he had a nerve. I guess he was just trying to deflect the attention away from his players who had been outplayed by West Ham. We had the most shots on goal and deserved our point at the very least, but could easily have had all three points. Noble should definitely have scored in the second half after fine work by Anderson, and Rice once again missed a header on the stroke of half time that you would have expected him to score.

But all in all it was an excellent performance against the team on top of the league. Klopp made further excuses about injuries. But has he seen our first team squad injury list? The pressure looks like it is beginning to tell on Liverpool, and Manchester City, after recovering from their recent blip, may well have the ability to retain their title.

The Daily Telegraph had an interesting feature this week where they compared the progress of teams in the Premier League by assessing how many points they have attained at this stage of the season set against how many they had at exactly the same time in the last campaign. Liverpool top this “league” with +12, followed by Tottenham (+9), Watford (+7), and then we are one of three teams on +5 (with Arsenal and Bournemouth). Five teams have fewer points than at this stage last season with Huddersfield (-13), Burnley (-11), Manchester City (-7), Manchester United (-5), and Leicester (-2) showing their lack of progress. Having said that, Manchester City had a record breaking campaign last time, and may still win the title, without reaching the heights that they did then. They seem to have the strongest squad, and may be too strong for a nervous Liverpool team.

Today’s opponents sit 14^th in the league just two places and six points below us, but only four points above the drop zone. Their next few games will decide whether they join us in the mid-table pack, or take part in the relegation dogfight. There are currently six teams in that contest who are not averaging a point a game, with Palace just above them. Their seven wins this season have been against Fulham (twice), Huddersfield, Burnley, Leicester, and most impressive of all, away wins at Wolves and Manchester City.

In fact they have picked up more points on their travels than at Selhurst Park, where they have only won three of their twelve home games. In those dozen games they have only scored 8 goals (and conceded 11), making games on their home ground the least entertaining in the Premier League in terms of goals by some margin. Away from home they have scored more than twice as many goals (and conceded more than twice as many also!). A worrying statistic is that Palace have only once this season recorded back to back victories. As they beat Fulham in their last game, this gives them the opportunity to double this.

Our head to head record against Palace is a positive one, and in fact the last seven games have resulted in wins for us or drawn games. Our last four visits to Selhurst Park have resulted in three wins and a draw. It should really have been four wins (oh Michail, why didn’t you take the ball into the corner?).

Apparently Arnautavic is now fit to resume his place in the squad, but can he displace Chicarito in the starting eleven, after the Mexican had one of his best games for us against Liverpool? They could be selected to play together but I believe that would upset the balance of the team. With the continued absence of so many players I expect the team to be as follows:

Fabianski;
Fredericks (or Zabaleta), Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell;
Rice, Noble, Snodgrass;
Antonio, Anderson;
Chicarito (or Arnautavic)

Our old boys, Tompkins and Kouyate are both doubtful due to injuries, but I notice that Zaha can play as he is in the process of challenging his ban for ironically applauding the referee who sent him off in a recent game. If his finishing could match his approach play then he would be some player but he has not been able to do this. Another statistic I noticed was that in the past two years the Palace penalty taker, Milivojevic, has scored 15 penalties, which puts him way ahead of all the other teams’ penalties in the league. I wonder how many of those kicks were awarded for fouls on Zaha?

In three of our last four visits to Selhurst Park there have been four goals scored in each match. Despite the dearth of goals at that ground in this season’s games I fully expect another four this time. If we are serious about pushing upwards to join the race for seventh place then this game is one we need to win, and I expect a 3-1 victory if we can reproduce the form of the Liverpool game. If we are not quite on the ball then there could be a repeat of last season’s 2-2 draw. And if the West Ham of the Wimbledon / Wolves games turns up then we could be on the receiving end of a 3-1 defeat.

If you fancy a small wager on our team then you can get 27/10 on a West Ham victory. A 3-1 win has odds of 28/1, and a 3-1 win with Issa Diop the unlikely scorer of the last goal in the match you can get odds of 1250/1. Any one of those three outcomes, or all three of them will do for me.

Tonight’s game at the London Stadium brings together two teams with arguably the most iconic anthems in English football – Blowing Bubbles meets You’ll Never Walk Alone.  Compared to own theme, YNWA is the Johnny-come-lately of anthems dating back to the mid-1960’s when the song was a Merseyside hit for Gerry and The Pacemakers.   As with YNWA, Bubbles also has its origins in a Broadway musical but has been associated with the Hammers since the 1920’s.  There is a common reference to dreams in both songs and depending on perspective tossed and blown might be preferable to fade and die.

Aside from iconic theme songs, there is little to compare in the history of the two clubs.  The once mighty Liverpool have a list of honours as long as a man with very long arms; while the Hammer’s trophy cabinet could easily fit in the average sized bathroom.  However, despite a cup win here and there, The Reds have endured a long barren spell in league football, stretching back almost thirty years to the black and white days of League Division One.  Many Liverpool fans will be regarding this season as their best chance of success since that famous Gerrard slip in 2014 – this is my preferred memory of Stevie G rather than his heroics in a certain cup final several years earlier.

The most favourable outcome of a Premier League season for many West Ham fans would be one where no team wins the title – there are very good cases to be made against each of the top six claiming the honour.  Personally, I have no particular axe to grind about Liverpool and have a lot of admiration for the job that Jurgen Klopp has done in his time at the club.  In reality, the title race is a two horse one – no matter what the squatters at Wembley might believe – and both Liverpool and Manchester City play open, attractive and exciting football.  From a purely footballing viewpoint I have no strong preference for one over the other but that takes nothing away from the delight I would have should West Ham manage to trip them up tonight.  The most irritating thing about Liverpool is the number of professional Scousers in the media; which means that if they do go all the way then it would be advisable to steer well clear of TV, radio and social media for most of May.

Having wobbled in their recent home game against Leicester, and with Manchester City breezing past Arsenal yesterday evening, the scene should theoretically be set for West Ham to test a nervous opposition.  Whether the Hammers have the appetite for such an occasion is less than certain from the evidence of recent performances.  Having previously beaten Manchester United and Arsenal at home perhaps West Ham can raise their game but that looks to be a long shot.

As usual injuries continue to play an unrepresentative part in preparations for the game with up to eleven players either doubtful or definitely out.  There isn’t a Peter in the West Ham squad (unless you include Pedro) but there would be few surprises should the season peter out – given that there is little to play for in the remaining four months.  A storming performance against would-be champions could perhaps be the trigger for renewed impetus.

The two main injury concerns for tonight are the fitness of Marko Arnautovic and Aaron Creswell – both of whom will reportedly undergo late fitness tests.  If Cresswell is out then Arthur Masuaku will keep his place in the much maligned left back slot.  Should Arnautovic be unavailable then it is pick one from a very poor bunch to deputise – perhaps that guy that Harry Redknapp brought on for Lee Chapman at Oxford will be in the crowd with his boots!  With Samir Nasri also almost certainly missing, the midfield will rely yet again on Declan Rice to man the barricades and Felipe Anderson to produce the guile.  An assortment of others will make up the numbers but can it be enough to worry a Liverpool defence who themselves are light on numbers?  At the other end, it is difficult to imagine a scenario where our defenders are able to shackle the visitor’s fearsome front three.  You might have guessed, I am not confident!

Kevin Fried from Leicestershire is the referee today with responsibility to keep an eye on Salah tumbling in the box – (when I said it would be great if West Ham could trip up Liverpool, I didn’t mean in the area!)  Friend was previously in charge of the Hammer’s away defeat at Brighton.

Not surprisingly the pundits are banking on an away win.  Lawro (who has tipped Liverpool to win every single match for several years) opts for 2-0 while at Sky, where Charlie Nicholas is sitting in for Paul Merson, they go for 2-1.  As much as I would love to be positive, this game has all the hallmarks of the many thumpings the Hammers have received over the years from the likes of Man City, Arsenal and, of course, Liverpool.  A fully fit Arnautovic could alter the equation a little but I sense that he will be kept back in reserve until next weekend.  Best case a 1-1 draw; worst case a four or five goal defeat.

When I began to take an interest in football in the late 1950’s I have to confess I didn’t take a lot of notice of Liverpool as they were not a top flight team at the time. I was vaguely aware of them in the early sixties when I was updating my football league ladders (given away by comics at the time) as they were prominent in Division Two, and since they were champions of that league in 1961-62 they have barely looked back. It is not as if they hadn’t had success in football prior to then, as they had been winners of the First Division title five times before, beginning in the very early twentieth century, and for the fifth time just after the Second World War.

They had been going through a lean period by their standards, having been relegated in the 1950’s, and when they were knocked out of the FA Cup in 1958-59 by non-league Worcester City, they appointed a new Scottish manager, Bill Shankly, who became a club legend that completely transformed their fortunes, and since that time they have barely looked back. Following their promotion to the top tier they finished a creditable eighth in their first season, and then in 1963-64 they were league champions. This was therefore their sixth title, but now their record stands as champions of England 18 times. Bearing in mind that the last of these was in 1990, this demonstrates their dominance of English football throughout the sixties, and especially in the 1970s and 1980s. They go into tonight’s game two points clear at the top with a game in hand, desperately seeking their first title for almost thirty years.

When we won the FA Cup in 1964, Liverpool had never won it at the time, but they did the year after, and their record now stands as having lifted the trophy 7 times. They have also been England’s most successful team in Europe and from the 1970s onwards they have won the European Cup or UEFA Champions League five times and the UEFA Cup three times.

Given this historical background it will come as no surprise that our head to head record against the Merseysiders is not an impressive one. They have beaten us 74 times to our 28, and in the twenty-first century we have only won 7 of the 34 meetings. In fact the last four games between the sides have been disastrous for us with Liverpool winning all of them and scoring four goals in each game. No team has ever scored four goals or more against a specific opponent on five consecutive occasions in the top flight since Arsenal managed the feat in the 1930s. Oh dear, that’s the kind of statistic I shouldn’t be mentioning!

Despite our poor overall record against them we have had many memorable games against Liverpool. The two with the highest profile were both Cup Finals. In 1981 when we were a second division side we met them in the League Cup Final, and lost after a replay. In 2006, we were seconds away from a famous 3-2 victory when up stepped Steven Gerrard with a wonder goal to take the game into extra time, and we subsequently lost the penalty shoot-out. Why didn’t Lionel Scaloni put the ball high into the stands when he should have?

But enough of defeats, what about some famous victories. In 2015-16 we won 3-0 at Anfield to end one of the longest running records of defeats at that ground that stretched back to 1963. Or the season before that when we led early on 2-0, Sterling pulled one back, before Amaltifano (remember him?) scored the winner close to the end. Even in our ill-fated relegation season under Avram Grant we led 2-0, Glenn Johnson pulled one back, and then Carlton Cole scored the winner with a scorching left-footed strike. I can even remember back to 1982-83 when we led 2-0, Liverpool pulled one back through Souness, and then Sandy Clark scored to give us a 3-1 win. You can probably see a pattern emerging here. We lead 2-0, Liverpool pull one back and then we score the winner. It has happened more than once!

Delving through my football programme collection I came across the one pictured above from 50 years ago this month. I recall the game clearly as I stood on the North Bank with friends on a very sunny Saturday afternoon. West Ham took the lead in the first half when, after some excellent work out wide on the right by Geoff Hurst, he crossed the ball for John Sissons to slam high into the net in front of the South Bank. Liverpool’s equaliser came at the same end in the second half, when after excellent wing play from Ian Callaghan, he crossed the ball for Roger Hunt to head home. I remember thinking at the time that Bobby Ferguson should perhaps have done a better job at keeping it out. The game ended 1-1. Liverpool finished as runners-up to Leeds that season, although neither of them scored more goals than we did (66). However their combined goals conceded (50) matched ours exactly, highlighting that our problems at the time were nothing to do with scoring goals, but more as a result of conceding them.

We have just 14 games left this season; what have we got to play for other than pride and finishing as high in the table as we can? We are now 7 points adrift of Wolves who lie seventh, so we’ll struggle to finish at the top of the clubs beginning with W even. We have a lengthy injury list – this is one area where we are the top team in the Premier League, and the bookmakers have us at 7/1 or thereabouts to win tonight’s game. Liverpool have won 19 of their 24 games this season losing just one (to Manchester City) so those odds are not realistic, they should be much longer.

But for no logical reason football sometimes provides us with an upset. Perhaps this evening we will go into a 2-0 lead, Liverpool will then score to set up an exciting climax, but we will then grab a winner. 3-1 to West Ham. The odds on us winning the game by that score are around 60/1. I can dream, can’t I?

Nothing says the West Ham way better than being dumped tamely out of the FA Cup by lowly opposition.  Managers and players may come and go but the universal law of West Ham banana skins remains that pretty football without an underlying steely determination will always prove vulnerable against a resolute and tenacious opponent.

It is perverse that the club’s only chance of silverware this season was not seen as its top priority rather than a place or two in the Premier League.  You could make a case that even our second string should be easily good enough to see off a side floundering at the bottom of League 1 – even if they do put out their first team.  To some extent being drawn against another Premier League team in the early rounds of the cup would be a more attractive option – a level playing field of squad players.  It was unfortunate for our cunning squad management strategy that the manager’s preferred style of play is way beyond the competence of all but a handful of his available squad.  Those brought in to make up the numbers simply lacked desire.

Today’s opponents, Wolverhampton Wanderers, almost slipped up on their own banana skin against Shrewsbury Town but fought back for a scrambled draw to keep them in the hat as one of only seven Premier League sides remaining in the 5^th round draw – each of whom will be jostling for the privilege of eventually losing to Manchester City in the final.  They do, at least, have something else to aim for other as well as the questionable distinction of finishing the season as best of the rest.

My very first recollection of any televised football match was when Wolves beat Blackburn Rovers in the 1960 FA Cup final – back in the day when players were usually called Harry, Ron, Eric, Eddie and Bill.  Wolves were an elite side at the time but have since experienced as long a barren spell as the Hammers.  In fact, their last success was lifting the League Cup in the same season that West Ham triumphed over Arsenal at Wembley in the Challenge Cup.

In tonight’s game it is reported that we will see the return of Marko Arnautovic to the West Ham starting eleven – unless there is yet another surprising U turn halfway up the M6.  This has been a very strange episode even for West Ham but, for a club with so few viable striking alternatives, a compromise agreement (even if it turns out to be short-term one) makes more sense than leaving him stewing in the reserves or letting him leave on the cheap.

The rest of the starting eleven pretty much picks itself, not because of the excellence of the incumbent players in their most recent outings but due to absence of feasible options – at least until the injury situation improves.  Motivation will be key in the game as another slow start would be suicidal.  Will the manager’s wrath after the weekend be enough to inspire?  Will there be any leadership on the pitch?  Will the players be wearing scarves as well as gloves?  It’s as much about attitude as it is ability.

 

Wolves can be well pleased with their first season back in the Premier League and under the guidance of a manager (whose name commentators cannot resist repeating at every opportunity), Nuno Espirito Santo, they have a side that are always prepared to give it a go – regardless of the reputation of the opposition.  Their style of play, with plenty of energy and intensity, is of a type that has regularly unsettled West Ham this season.  If Moutinho and Neves are allowed to dictate the pace and direction of the game, then the Hammers could be in deep trouble.   Wolves are not the most threatening up front but in Traore have a player whose primary attribute is the ability to embarrass West Ham defenders.

Much will depend on the returning Declan Rice to prop up the centre of midfield (how he was missed at the weekend) and the talents and probing of Samir Nasri and Felipe Anderson in providing ammunition for Arnautovic.

New ref on the block, David Coote from Nottingham, is with us for a second time today and I hope we can impress him more than we did up at Turf Moor.  Coote has something of a card waving fetish have sent off five players this term.  Watch out for those late, mistimed tackles lads!

Lawro and Merson are unanimous in predicting a Wolves home victory by 2-0 and 2-1 respectively.  It seems impossible to argue with them on the basis of the last two performances with the best hope being that the teams consistent inconsistency will come to the rescue.  Having rested on their laurels long enough following the Arsenal win maybe a different team will show up tonight.  Perhaps Arnautovic will have a point to make and inspire us to a 2-2 draw!

Prior to the FA Cup debacle on Saturday I headed my preview of the game “FA Cup embarrassment for West Ham?” Somehow you could just see it coming given our appalling record against lower league opposition and I could easily have left off the question mark when writing the piece. Once again social media went into overdrive, both during the game and afterwards, with opinion on what happened. For me it was a case of not really wanting to be in Wimbledon on a Saturday night facing a team prepared to give everything, and totally make a nonsense of their position at the foot of League One. At the same time we made a nonsense of our position in the top half of the Premier League.

As a supporter of over 60 years I felt that our performance in the first half was right up there with the most appalling I have ever seen. Who was to blame? Well firstly the players on the pitch, and secondly the manager who has previous in underestimating the opposition going back to his Manchester City days.

For this game he thought he could win the game by resting Fabianski, Zabaleta, Cresswell, Rice, Nasri and Anderson. And that ignores the soap opera going on with our “talisman” Arnautavic. What is the reasoning behind this? We are nowhere near getting involved in the relegation scrap, so why is the FA Cup not our top priority? Of course I know the reason behind this; it is all about money.

But this was a competition we could possibly win. Ask our fans whether they would prefer a trip to Wembley for the FA Cup Final or a finishing place of seventh in the Premier League. I think I know the answer that the overwhelming majority would give. We certainly are not able to challenge for the top places in the Premier League, but you don’t have to win many games to lift the FA Cup. Just six actually. And the way that this year’s competition has worked out, and with the luck of the draw, it might have been an easier task for us than usual. How many Premier League teams went into last night’s draw for the fifth round? Not a lot, as Paul Daniels might have said. Interesting that our conquerors face a home tie in Round 5 against another team from South London, a side not exactly popular with our fans. That could have been us!

Shortly after the end of the game our missing Austrian striker appeared in a video uploaded for all to see. He said that he is back, just like his thespian similar namesake told us he would be, in The Terminator. I wasn’t aware he had actually been away! Apparently he loves the London Stadium and West Ham and we should only believe what he is saying. So what was all that nonsense from his brother / agent about going to China to win trophies? Surely if he loved West Ham so much then he would have been available for the last couple of games and in the right frame of mind?

So before we are even in February what is there left for us to win this season? For a start there is the unofficial Premier League Division 2 title. The league has neatly divided into three divisions. There is the top ‘elite’ six (Division 1), who are the same six clubs virtually every year; there is the battle to avoid relegation (Division 3), currently being contested by the bottom 7 teams; and finally there is the middle section (Division 2) of which we are one of the competing teams. Only Brighton do not fit neatly into one of the categories at the moment as they hover in no-mans-land between Divisions 2 and 3.

Another competition that we could win is the unofficial title of champion club beginning with the letter ‘W’. There are only three of us competing in the Premier League this season, namely Watford, Wolves and ourselves. Watford are currently on top with 33 points, closely followed by today’s opponents Wolves on 32, and then we bring up the rear on 31. This could be a very exciting contest in the remainder of the season and gives us something else to play for!

And while I am writing about teams beginning with a certain letter of the alphabet I would like to pay tribute to the English football “L’s”. There are 92 clubs in the Football League and a further 24 in the Vanarama National League, the fifth tier of the game. That is 116 in total. How many can you name who begin with the letter L? Well you have Liverpool, Leeds, Luton, Lincoln, Leyton Orient, and one more that I have forgotten, oh yes, Leicester. The amazing thing for fans of the letter L is that the first five I have named are currently the top teams in the Premier League, Championship, League One, League Two and Vanarama League respectively. How uncanny is that?

Avid readers of the Sun will have noticed on Saturday a column “Top Tips” where they make betting suggestions. I will repeat part of the column here. “The team worth a punt for me (to win the FA Cup) is West Ham. Not wanting it is not an option. Hammers fans are quicker than anyone about reminding their players of their obligations. And in Wimbledon tonight they all but have a ticket to the last 16 already. As Paddy Power says “West Ham have nothing else to play for”. Paddy make the Hammers a generous 16-1 to win it. But the bet I really like is the monster 8-1 Coral offer on them making the semis”. I hope you didn’t invest too heavily here!

In betting terms West Ham are undoubtedly one of the most unreliable teams that you can bet on. They have proved that consistently. I have a small wager on them from time to time (with small being the key word). I wonder if Kevin Dunne will refer back to Saturday’s column when he puts forward his suggestions in his article next week?

So what will happen tonight? Wolves themselves are hardly at the peak of their form, only just scraping a replay at Shrewsbury on Saturday. Our players need to put in a performance to begin to atone for Saturday. With the return of the seven players I mentioned earlier who were left out of the starting line-up against Wimbledon, I fully expect a totally different kind of showing from our team.

But as we all know, this is West Ham, anything can possibly happen. A 4-2 win for the Hammers is on offer at around 100/1. It might be a fun bet, but I wouldn’t put your house on it.

With the Premier League becoming a cash rich over hyped marketing experience – a TV show where you are encouraged to dig deep into your pockets to be part of the live studio (stadium) audience – the FA Cup has manfully attempted to hold on to tradition, even if it is no longer holds the pre-eminent role in the season that it once boasted.

Despite the best efforts of the media companies to monetise the tournament by stretching games over the entirety of an extended weekend, the competition still conjures up the nostalgia of a much less cynical and money-driven game – jumpers for goalposts, three and in, rush goalie and next goal’s the winner!   The magic of the FA Cup may well be that it has managed to keep hold of its weekend scheduling, rather than being relegated to a midweek sideshow as cup competitions often are in other countries.  The Cup may be deep in the shadow of the Premier League as far as the clubs and authorities are concerned but it continues to have a special place in the hearts of many match-day supporters.  There is nothing better than a day out at Wembley – unless it is a Tottenham home game!

Today, West Ham make their second trip of the season to the Kingsmeadow Stadium to face AFC Wimbledon.  Having eventually managed to see off the Dons challenge in the League Cup they must now do so again to book a place in the 5^th round Challenge Cup draw.

Wimbledon have seen a change of manager since the previous encounter and despite the appointment of one-time West Ham coach, Wally Downes, they remain firmly rooted to the bottom of League 1.  Even for a club as incompetent in the art of banana skin management as West Ham, this should be an easy ride.   All that is then required are a set of further benign draws supported by wins today for Burnley, Crystal Palace and Sheffield Wednesday.  Then we can start dusting off the claret ribbons for a mad day out in May.

Manuel Pellegrini has been making all the right noises about treating the cup seriously, but with a tough league game at Wolverhampton a few days later he could be tempted to resting a few key players – or at least keep them in reserve on the bench.  Even though our backup players are rarely up to the task in the Premier League they should easily have enough quality to see off today’s opponents.

Surely we will see Adrian back in between the goalposts and can also expect starts for the likes of the fit again Ryan Fredericks, Arthur Masuaku, Javier Hernandez and Grady Diangana.  I am also waiting patiently for a first first-team opportunity for Nathan Holland.

Match-day referee is Anthony Taylor from Cheshire, who was previously in charge this season of the defeat at Liverpool and the home win over Palace.  The presence of a big name referee being down to the presence of the BT Sports cameras – the game having been selected for its potential banana skin properties.  Despite the TV exposure, the match is not one of the six ties selected for trial by VAR.

This is a nailed on West Ham win today – and by a comfortable margin.  Admittedly, I have not seen the many embarrassing cup exits at the hands of lowly opposition coming in the past but you just have to believe it won’t happen again.  Just need to stock up on enough supplies to last through the gruelling weekend schedule and a West Ham win.  May even call in at the barbershop on the way home.

This is the 61^st season of me following the fortunes of West Ham in the FA Cup. In the 60 previous competitions I have seen us lift the trophy on three occasions at (the old) Wembley, finish as possibly the unluckiest losing finalists once (why didn’t you boot the ball high into the stands Lionel?), lose in a controversial semi-final (with thanks to Keith Hackett!), a few quarter final defeats, and numerous embarrassing losses to teams from below us in the Football League.

My first FA Cup recollection is facing a poor Spurs side at Upton Park shortly before my fifth birthday in 1959. This was our first season back in the top flight, and a successful one too finishing sixth, whereas our North London rivals were to finish a lowly fifth from bottom. That didn’t stop us tumbling out of the competition at the first hurdle losing 2-0. When the draw for Round 3 was made the following season we were pulled out of the hat to play away from home at Division Two side Huddersfield. We completed the hard part by drawing 1-1 in Yorkshire, so progression to the next round would be simple? Not so. We were hammered 5-1 at Upton Park in the replay, and once again were out of the FA Cup without winning a game.

In my third season we were once again drawn to face a side from outside the top flight in Round 3, Stoke City, but at home this time. We could only manage a 2-2 draw at home, before losing to the only goal of the game at the Victoria Road four days later. As a young boy I couldn’t understand how this could keep happening. Little did I know at the time that being a Hammers fan would provide me with many cup exits like these! By 1962 I was once again hopeful when the top sides entered the draw and we were once again drawn against lower league opposition, away to Plymouth in the South-West. This one wasn’t even close, as we crashed out by 3-0. You have to remember that in those times, Division One sides didn’t field weakened teams in the FA Cup but used their regular first team players right from the outset of the competition.

By 1963 I was approaching my ninth birthday when, for the first time since I became aware of football, West Ham won an FA Cup match. It didn’t look promising when we drew a goalless Round 3 game at home to Fulham the day before my birthday in early February. This was one of the worst winters on record, and we didn’t play any games at all in the month of January. But incredibly we won the replay at Craven Cottage 2-1 with goals from Boyce and Byrne. We then set off on an FA Cup run, the likes of which I had never previously witnessed, beating Swansea 1-0 (Boyce) in Round 4, and then Everton by the same score (Byrne) in Round 5. We had now reached the Quarter Final and were drawn away to Liverpool who were a fast improving team in their first season in the top flight after promotion under the legendary Bill Shankly. Once again a late goal meant another 1-0 game, but this time we were on the receiving end and went out.

In 1964 of course we had yet another brilliant cup run, and this time we went all the way defeating Charlton (3-0), Leyton Orient (after a replay, 3-0), Swindon (3-1), Burnley (3-2), and Manchester United in the Semi-Final (3-1). Close observers will notice we scored three goals in every round on the way to the final, but could we keep that record up at Wembley? We needed to, as we had to twice come from behind to beat a plucky Second Division Preston side 3-2, and win the club’s first ever major trophy. We were almost as successful in the League Cup that year too, progressing to the Semi-Final before losing over two legs to Leicester.

We didn’t progress very far in our attempt to defend the trophy in 1965, losing 1-0 at home to Chelsea in the Fourth Round. However that season was a successful one in cup terms as we went all the way to win the European Cup Winners Cup, our second major trophy in two years. By 1966 it was back to embarrassing elimination from the FA Cup competition losing 4-1 to Blackburn Rovers in a fourth round replay. Blackburn finished the season at the foot of the table and were relegated. Some consolation of course was gained by West Ham winning the World Cup that year, scoring all of the goals in the final, providing 75% of the assists, and being captained by the legendary Bobby Moore. At just 12 years old I had seen West Ham win the FA Cup, a European trophy, and the World Cup!

We didn’t fare any better in the 1967 FA Cup losing at the first hurdle to lowly Swindon in a replay. In 1968 we reached the fifth round before losing at home to Sheffield United, yet another team who would go on to be relegated at the end of the season. In 1969 we reached Round 5 again before another shameful defeat losing 3-0 at lowly Mansfield Town, before going out in Round 3 once again in 1970 to another lower league club, Middlesbrough. Our 1971 FA Cup run was famous for defeat at Blackpool (4-0) in the third round following the famous night club incident. Blackpool finished bottom of the first division that season and were relegated, just like Huddersfield who finished at the foot of the table the following year, but not before eliminating us from the FA Cup.

We kept up our amazing record of losing to lower league sides in 1973 when we went out to Hull City, and repeated it the following season when going out to third division Hereford! So by 1975 we weren’t expecting much, especially after losing to Second Division Fulham in the League Cup, but amazingly we once again went all the way and defeated Fulham (including Bobby Moore) in the Final.

In 1980 we won the FA Cup as a Second Division side, beating high-flying Arsenal in the Final, although the previous season we had lost in the third round again to fourth division side Newport County. By now I had been following West Ham for 22 years and had seen us win the FA Cup three times, a pretty decent record and one that I hoped would continue. But in those 22 seasons we had been knocked out of the competition 13 times by teams from a lower division, or sides that were relegated that same season.

To cut to the chase, we have now moved on almost forty years, and the closest we came to lifting the trophy again was in 2006 when we were incredibly unlucky losers to Liverpool in the final in Cardiff, thanks to Steven Gerrard’s wonder goal which forced the game into extra time. Those  years have been littered with further embarrassing defeats to lowly opposition including Wrexham, Watford, Birmingham, Torquay, Sunderland, Barnsley, Luton, Grimsby, Wrexham (again!), Swansea, Tranmere, Fulham, Sheffield United, Watford (again!), Middlesbrough, Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest, and Wigan.

By my reckoning we have been knocked out of this competition more than 50% of the time in the last sixty years by teams from lower leagues, or sides who were subsequently relegated from our division that season. Without detailed checking I doubt that any other club can boast such an embarrassing record. We’ve also been eliminated by lower league sides frequently in the League Cup too!

On the other hand we’ve won the FA Cup three times in that period, a feat only beaten by five other clubs, namely five of the “elite six”, Tottenham, Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea.

Everton match us with three FA Cups in that time, whereas Manchester City have only won it twice.

West Ham are really like the proverbial box of chocolates (Forrest Gump) – you never know what you are going to get. So will today’s game be another step towards winning the FA Cup for the fourth time? Or will Wimbledon be yet another lower league side to cause an upset to our hopes? It is now almost forty years since we won this competition. Perhaps this year?

Today we meet Bournemouth for the thirteenth time in history. The record to date reads 5 wins for the Hammers, 4 draws, and 3 defeats. So who can look forward to lucky 13? If we look at Premier League meetings alone then our record is not so good. We have won 2, drawn 2 and lost 3, with all the games taking place in the last four seasons (including this one).

Our paths first crossed in 1929 in round 5 of the FA Cup. We were drawn away and drew the game 1-1, returning to Upton Park four days later to record a comfortable 3-1 win to progress to the Quarter Final, where we went out of the competition to Portsmouth.

Sixty years elapsed before we met again in the second tier of English Football in 1989. Once again we drew the away game 1-1, and comfortably won the return fixture at home by 4-1. We didn’t meet them the following season, not because we were promoted, but because the Cherries dropped into the third tier at the end of that campaign. A further ten years went by before we met them in a League Cup tie at Upton Park, where we won the round 3 fixture 2-0.

Bournemouth became one of the smallest (if not the smallest) clubs to reach the Premier League when they were promoted at the end of the 2014-15 season. They recorded their first ever victory in the top flight when they won 4-3 at Upton Park in August 2015, but we did win the reverse fixture on their ground the following January 3-1.

Another first came in the following season, our first at the London Stadium, where a late header enabled us to win our first league game at our new ground. But we were beaten in the return game away from home 3-2, despite taking an early lead after Bournemouth had missed a penalty.

There were even more goals the next time we met on Boxing Day in 2017. We were leading 3-2, after trailing 2-1 with ten minutes to go, when deep into injury time Bournemouth put the ball into our net. Not only did the linesman put his flag up for offside, but the ball was handled into the goal. Referee Bobby Madley chose to allow the goal to stand, which was one of the most astonishing decisions made by a referee, and a reason why VAR can’t come too soon for me. The return game less than a month later was a 1-1 draw, where once again we came from behind.

And finally, another first at the beginning of this season, the first home game under our new manager, which resulted in a 2-1 defeat after we had led in the first half.

Five interesting facts from West Ham v Bournemouth fixtures:

1. West Ham have never failed to score in any of the 12 games against Bournemouth in history.

2. Four West Ham players whose surnames begin with A have scored against Bournemouth (Arnautavic, Antonio, Ayew, and Allen (Martin)). We therefore hope that Arnie, Antonio and Anderson are on the pitch today! Arnie has scored 3 times for us against them, and Antonio twice.

3. Conversely both Josh King and Callum Wilson have scored hat-tricks against us, and both could line up against us today, although Wilson faces a late fitness test.

4. Seven different West Ham managers have been in charge in our 12 games against them: Syd King, Lou Macari, Billy Bonds, Harry Redknapp, Slaven Bilic, David Moyes and Manuel Pellegrini. King, Bonds, and Redknapp had a 100% record, Macari and Moyes never lost a game, Bilic won two and lost two, and only our current boss has a negative record in this fixture, which can be rectified with victory today.

5. Our seven Premier League meeting average four goals a game, with 28 scored in total, 14 each.

Five other points to note:

1. Since the beginning of last season, Bournemouth have conceded more goals in the Premier League than any other team. We come second!

2. Bournemouth are the most out of form team in the Premier League, losing 11 of their last 14 games (league and cup), picking up only 7 points in the last 12 league games.

3. We have collected 19 points since the beginning of December (the third most in the Premier League in that period).

4. 17 of our last 20 goals have come in the second half of games.

5. The majority of our Premier League goals against Bournemouth have come in the second half of games.

Taking into account past history of our meetings, and the recent record of both clubs, you can come to your own conclusion as to what will happen today. One thing is definite. It will not be a 0-0 draw! (or will it?).

My prediction is that the four goals per game average will be maintained, and we will end up winners by 3-1, with goals from the three A’s Arnautavic, Antonio, and Anderson.