Tag: #premierleague

Can West Ham put an end to Everton’s unbeaten run when we visit Goodison Park for the final time today?

With just ten games of the season to go we are languishing in 16th place in the Premier League table prior to this round of matches. Apart from week two our whole season has been spent between 12th and 16th position. In this most tedious of seasons what can we look forward to? Just looking at the table with a good run we might manage to climb to the dizzy heights of 13th and are unlikely to fall any lower than our current 16th.

Historically Everton used to be a bit of a bogey team (do you remember the days when Lukaku used to score for fun against us?) but in recent years we have slightly had the upper hand, winning four of our last six visits to Goodison Park. In the last 5 seasons the games between West Ham and Everton have almost all qualified to be the last game on Match of the Day. The football has been boring to watch and there have been very few goals. In the last nine league games between us there has been a total of just 14 goals. We have scored 9 of them, thus averaging one a game. Everton have scored just 5. Their five have come in 5 separate games, thus failing to score in the other four. We have also had 4 goalless games, but at least we twice scored 2 and once even 3!

Everton come into the game as one of the form teams in the Premier League. They have won four and drawn four of their last eight games, the longest unbeaten run of all the teams in the top flight apart from league leaders Liverpool. Four of their last five have been draws. They are the draw specialists having drawn 12 of their 28 games, the most in the league. They have lost 9 times which puts them on a par for losing with fifth placed Manchester City.

The game has got lack of goals written all over it. Neither team has got too much to play for other than trying to move up the Premier League table and trying to impress their new boss. Talking of the men in charge I see that Graham Potter has the upper hand on David Moyes winning five and drawing two of the seven times they’ve met.

We’ve won four times away from home this season, keeping a clean sheet in each. It helps. We’ve only been involved in one goalless game and that was against, yes you’ve guessed it Everton. Let’s hope that Everton don’t score the first goal of the game. That’s happened to us 15 times this season and we haven’t won any of them.

I can’t say I’m particularly looking forward to the game. It won’t be a classic I’m sure. I reckon a 0-0 draw or perhaps just one goal in the game. I just hope we score it.

And then we’ve got (yawn) another international break, the fourth of the season. I’ve just seen Tuchel’s squad. Henderson! Rashford! Burn! Is that the best we can do? It’s a sad indictment that apart from Bowen we don’t have any other player in the senior squad and none in the under 21 squad either.   Let’s hope I’ve got it all wrong and we see a scintillating game of attacking football and we put an end to their unbeaten run. We can dream can’t we?

West Ham Stuck In Endless Potter’s Wheel Interlude Loop

Years ago the BBC would screen a film of a potter’s wheel as an interlude between regular programming or when something had gone wrong. It feels that’s where we are at West Ham at the moment.

There is a certain symmetry that a pointless game in a pointless season ended pointless for West Ham on Monday night. The visitors couldn’t have imagined a more leisurely, low-key warm up in advance of Sunday’s Carabao cup final – unless it had been a behind closed doors friendly. Indeed, for all the excitement generated at the London Stadium, it could well have been played behind closed doors.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that the London Stadium is a very different venue in almost every way to the old Boleyn Ground. The most electric of atmospheres in E13 could never come close to being matched at the E15 bowl in its current configuration. But atmosphere and the London Stadium are not mutually exclusive when supporters are given something to shout about – whether that is moments of awesome individual flair, a demonstration of high intensity attacking football, or games which have some meaning or importance to them. As things stand though all are missing. And there is very little hope that anything can improve during the remainder of the season.

There is a concept used when developing the TV seasons and series churned out by the various streaming platforms known as ‘second screen’. It involves plots and dialogue being dumbed down to satisfy viewers who are only half-watching because they are otherwise distracted by their smartphones. With football becoming more TV content than sporting competition, the fear is that it may well be following a similar path. Increasingly, the drama and talking points of games are dominated by VAR reviews of each significant incident and whether the correct minutes of added time have been allocated.

For all the exaggerated best-league-in-the-world media hype, the growing levels of tactical rigidity, gamesmanship and over-complicated officiating have chipped away at Premier League entertainment with each passing year. A situation that has been brought into even sharper focus in a season where most of the major issues have effectively been settled with a quarter of the season still to play.

Manchester United have received a great deal of media scrutiny recently for an abysmal track record since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson. At last, pundits have woken up to the idea that years of failure might rest with the club owners rather than the lengthy list of hapless managerial casualties. A club run as brand, lacking in footballing strategy who believe the key to renewed success is to sack the tea lady. Well as the great Neil Diamond once sang “well except for the names and a few other changes, if you talk about West Ham, the story is the same one.” And nothing says ‘absence of a strategy’ better than a club needing to be ‘in transition’ twice in a solitary season. As with the Mancs, West Ham have a club board which has consistently taken bad decisions – often for reasons of self aggrandisement – and failed to move the club forward in any significant way.   

The latest indications are that the club are not actively looking to fill the vacancy for Director of Football or Technical Director left by the departure of Tim Steidten. Club sources have denied any interest in Dan Ashworth citing a happy camp where Graham Potter is a mate of Karen Brady’s husband and (new head of recruitment) Kyle Macaulay is also a long-term pal of Potters. Now, this might all work very nicely if Potter is a success and stays in post as coach/ manager for the next five to ten years. But if it all goes horribly wrong and we are looking for a replacement in 18 months or 2 years then, with no footballing continuity, it will be back to square one with the need for rebuild, refresh and transition to suit the next appointment. The only detectable strategic intent shown by the Board is to repeat the same mistakes of the last 15 years and hope for a different outcome.

I do hope Potter turns out to be the right man for West Ham. The early goodwill earned from being a breath of fresh air after Julen Lopetegui has begun to fade as delivery in press conferences and interviews is not matched on the pitch. For reasons best known to himself, he has decided to concentrate on fixing the defensive frailties at the expense of everything else. A manager who was accused of presiding over shot shy teams during spells at Brighton and Chelsea has unfortunatley reinforced that tag at West Ham, with a return of just 17 shots on target in ten games played to date.

Quite what Potter’s objectives are for the rest of the season is uncertain. He has the reputation as a coach prepared to vary formation and yet he has been most conservative in setup and team selection. There is nothing of note left to play for and we must hope he has already realised that a huge squad overhaul is required in the summer. So, why the reluctance to try a few different options now?

Very few teams use a three-man defence as their preferred formation. Those that do tend to be basement dwellers organised to sit deep and grind out results on the break. And where wing backs are deployed, it typically requires a target in the middle for them to aim at. There seems no point or benefit for this setup at West Ham either in the immediate or longer term. It is the polar opposite of the attacking style of football promised to supporters when Potter joined.

Previously, I had expressed surprise when the coach would put out the same team at home Leicester that had won away at Arsenal. The mentality of not breaking up a winning side disappeared years ago. The two games – away to a title chasing side and home to a relegation threatened one – were about as different in ambition as you could get. At Arsenal the low defensive block to frustrate Arsenal made sense, and Jarrod Bowen and Mohammed Kudus were ideally suited to exploiting the space vacated as the hosts committed players forward. In fact, it was replacing Bowen with Evan Ferguson that handed the initiative back to the ten-man Gunners in the closing stages.

But a team with nine defensive minded players at home to Leicester was simply unnecessary. The result may have provided some vindication but was it not an opportunity to try something a little different? When you play at home there is a certain level of expectations from your supporters, especially against an opponent as woeful and unambitious as Leicester. A combined midfield of Edson Alvarez, James Ward-Prowse and Tomas Soucek – whatever their individual attributes – simply would not have the pace, guile, ball carrying ability or passing range to work effectively as a group. These collective shortcomings were abundantly clear in the display against Newcastle.

The Newcastle game might have been very different if Soucek had not spooned that early chance over bar. I wanted to get another look at his goal celebration as I never realised it was supposed to be a helicopter until he mentioned it after the Leicester game. I had it down as a small girl pretending to be a fairy.

The Hammers pay a farewell visit to Goodison on Saturday for the Moyesiah showdown and that will be it for games in March. Do they really need to drag the season out like this? COYI!

Can West Ham achieve their first double of the season when Newcastle visit the London Stadium on Monday night?

With just eleven games of the season to go we are fifteenth in the Premier League table prior to this round of matches. Apart from week two our whole season has been spent between 12th and 16th position. Graham Potter took over on 10th January so this game marks two months in charge. We were fourteenth when he assumed control and his seven league games have produced three wins, one draw and three defeats, hence ten points, including wins in the last two games. That was the first time this season that we had won back- to-back games. Six of the first seven winning games this season were followed by defeats. Can we make it three wins in a row?

Newcastle, in sixth place before this round of matches, and just three points off a Champions League place, haven’t been in the best of form in recent games, losing three of their last four league games, conceding eleven goals in the process. Surprisingly we beat them 2-0 in the reverse fixture in November with goals from Soucek and Wan Bissaka, but at home we haven’t beaten them for more than six years since a 2-0 win in March 2019 when Pellegrini was our manager and the goals were scored by Rice and Noble.

Historically the Geordies have had the better of us and especially so in recent times. We have beaten them just eleven times in forty-one league games in the twenty-first century, and just twice in the twelve games since that 2-0 win in 2019.

What do you think of this season so far? Two head coaches, the whole campaign in the bottom half of the table, and another poor defensive record conceding 47 goals so far – only four teams have conceded more. Just 32 goals scored, once again just four teams have scored fewer. Part of the reason for this seems to be our inability to shoot on target. Despite doing OK in respect of making chances, we are bottom of the league when it comes to shots on target, and only Southampton have a worse record for the shot conversion rate where our 30 goals have come from 333 shots.

Newcastle rely heavily on Alexander Isak, one of the best all round strikers in the Premier League. He has scored almost half of their league goals this season. He will certainly be a big danger but Anthony Gordon is suspended following his red card in their previous game. No doubt his place will be taken by Harvey Barnes who I can recall playing well and scoring goals against us.

It is now more than 18 months ago that Lucas Paqueta hit the headlines for being suspected of breaching betting rules. It seems that the case is about to be heard soon and he would appear to have the odds stacked against him. I read that the standard of proof for FA hearings, as in civil law cases, is based on a ‘balance of probabilities’. In criminal proceedings on the other hand there is a more rigorous threshold of ‘beyond reasonable doubt’. This means that the FA only need to prove it is more likely than not that he was involved in spot-fixing by being deliberately booked, thereby influencing betting markets.

He was officially charged in May 2024 and Paqueta strenuously denies the charges. It is alleged that the FA are seeking a lifetime ban so if the case goes against him, and the odds are stacked that way, it would be bad news for the club as well as the player himself. I just hope that his legal representation is on a par with that which appears to be delaying the multitude of charges facing Manchester City.

I would think that a majority of fans are behind Graham Potter and there certainly seems to be a more positive feeling around the club now that he has taken over. It’s still the honeymoon period and we need to see what can be achieved in the final games of this less than exciting season.

Can the Tynesiders become the first team that we achieve a double over this season?

We last did the double over them in the season I referred to earlier (2018-19). In addition to the 2-0 home win we won on their ground by an emphatic 3-0 with goals from Hernandez (2) and Anderson.

We have five opportunities left to achieve the double over Premier League teams in the remainder of the season. After Newcastle the other teams that we have already beaten in this campaign who we have yet to meet for a second time are Manchester United, Ipswich, Wolves and Southampton.

On paper our final eleven games do not present us with the most challenging of run-ins. Six of those games are against teams (like us) currently in the bottom eight. It would be good to extend our winning (or at least unbeaten) run, but as we know all too well, with West Ham you never know what you are going to get!

The Quick Bowen Prod Bumps Over The Lazy Fox

West Ham make it back-to-back Premier League wins and clean sheets in what must be a candidate for the most uneventful game of the year. Not even a single yellow card.

It turned out to be a good week for West Ham and Graham Potter as the Hammers followed Saturday’s heroic victory at the Emirates with a stroll past relegation bound Leicester City at the London Stadium. Back-to-back wins and clean sheets are a rarity for the club, even at the best of times.

The two opponents presented very different challenges for the coach, and he elected to face them with an identical setup and personnel. Following a brief period of experimentation and a good look at what is available, Potter may now have settled for the time being on the 3-5-2 formation that has seen his personal points return boosted to ten from seven games.

The principal takeaway from those last two games is that he has settled on a system that plays to the strength of the players involved. An encouraging change following an era of square pegs and round holes. Max Kilman looks more comfortable in a three, the returning Jean-Clair Todibo looks a class act, and even old-man Aaron Cresswell has looked fit and assured. Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Oliver Scarles have looked the part and excelled in their respective wingback roles. The midfield three work hard, look compact and have complemented each other despite an underlying absence of pace and guile. Up front, Jarrod Bowen and Mohammed Kudus have demonstrated great movement and energy; and are a threat to any defence. It is a setup better suited to counterattacking than breaking down opponents but that’s where we are at moment – until the deficiencies can be addressed in the summer.

The display at Arsenal had been a masterclass in frustrating the hosts with the type of hardworking, low defensive block that we have become to know and love. But unlike late period Moyes it retained the ability to launch rapid counterattacks through the pace and industry of Wan-Bissaka, Bowen and Kudus. With the Hammers defending in numbers and providing outstanding support and backup to each other, the hosts had run out of ideas well before the end. Not even two minutes of added time at the end of eight minutes of added time could produce a worthwhile attempt to alarm Alphonse Areola. If anything, it was the visitors who created to the more clear cut opportunities to add to the goal tally.

In contrast to the lung-busing efforts at the Emirates, last night’s encounter with Leicester was something of a stroll from start to finish. The visitors offered no clues to suggest they were a team fighting for their Premier League lives. They were low on quality, fight and spirit; and look doomed to a quick return to the Championship next season. The Hammers needed only to be competent to earn the three points, knowing that sooner or later the Foxes would gift them a couple of goals.

A kind man might give Cresswell the benefit of the doubt that his was a clinical pinpoint pass to set up the first goal. But it really looked like a shot to me. The move had started with good interplay bewteen by Bowen and Tomas Soucek on the right. Leicester failed to take several opportunities to clear their lines before Cresswell’s shot, the keeper’s save from Kudus, and Soucek arriving on the scene to claim a birthday goal – his sixth of the season.

The second goal just before half-time realistically ended the game as a contest. A mis-hit James Ward-Prowse corner (which should probably not have been given) was bungled by the visitor’s rearguard allowing Bowen to nip in smartly between three defenders – his shot from a tight angle hitting Vestergaard on its way into the net.

The second half was as drab as anything. The inoffensiveness of the match was underlined by the absence of a single yellow card award – a great disappointment for the residents of Paqueta Island. When was the last time that happened? As Potter said after the game this was not champagne football. In the circumstances we must simply take the win and focus on the positives in the knowledge that stability has returned to the playing side of the club. The players look far happier than in the early part of the season, and a sense of structure, organisation and movement has returned to the pitch.

It was surprising that the second half wasn’t seen as an ideal opportunity to take a better look at Luis Guilherme. He looks fully involved and engaged in the training session videos posted regularly by the club, so a bit of a mystery why he wasn’t given a 30-minute run out last night free from any pressure. Surely, it would have added a modicum of interest to the evening’s ‘entertainment’.

Meanwhile, the Evan Ferguson situation continues to bemuse. He looks as rusty as anything and is going to need a lot more time than is available to get up to speed. Without knowing how the situation might eventually pan out, it looks the most peculiar loan arrangement for West Ham.

The Hammers are now in a weird situation where they play just two games in the next 32 days. In all, there are 11 Premier League games left to play – at home to Newcastle, Bournemouth, Southampton, Tottenham, and Nottingham Forest; and away to Everton, Wolves, Liverpool, Brighton, Manchester United and Ipswich. A chance then to improve our league standing although a 4-way battle for 13th place with Tottenham, Manchester United and Everton might be as good as it gets. At least its in our own hands.

Ironically for the end of February, the Premier League season is effectively done and dusted as far as the major issues are concerned. Liverpool will almost certainly be champions, and it will take a huge turnaround in fortunes if any of Southampton, Ipswich and Leicester are to avoid the drop – none of them is on course to break the 30 point barrier. And what are the odds that Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea finally nab the remaining Champions League spots away from the plucky challengers. A Super Sunday Damp Squib beckons for the end of May.

Next up for West Ham is yet another exile to the Monday night graveyard slot (on March 11) against a Newcastle side who may well have one eye on the EFL Cup Final which takes place on the following Sunday. We can hope for another win – and a little more entertainment, perhaps. COYI!

A look back at West Ham’s unexpected win at Arsenal (I wasn’t expecting that!) and a look ahead to Leicester.

Arsenal 0 West Ham 1. I wasn’t expecting that. Liverpool had given Arsenal a little bit of hope in the title race with four draws since the turn of the year when they were held by Manchester United, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa and Everton. The hope was slammed back in their faces by a brave and disciplined performance by inconsistent West Ham. We were well worth the three points. I wasn’t expecting that.

Our last game at home to Brentford was dreadful as was the home game against Palace in January. But a win against Fulham (albeit a little lucky), a creditable draw at Villa, and an unlucky defeat at Chelsea showed evidence of Graham Potter’s impact since his appointment. This was perhaps the best performance and result so far in his short time in charge.

We exposed Arsenal’s shortcomings. They might have enjoyed the lion’s share of possession, but they had no cutting edge. Similar to all the excuses coming out of their North London neighbours they moaned about their injury list, especially in attack. Hold on a minute. We are missing Antonio, Fullkrug, Summerville, and Paqueta was added to the list before this game. We all have problems so enough of the excuses.

Manchester United were keen to offload Aaron Wan-Bissaka for what is beginning to look like a bargain fee. They were happy with him defensively but felt they needed a full back who was better going forward. For me he has been a revelation in this respect. I wasn’t expecting that.

We were massively threatening when we broke, Wan-Bissaka in particular a danger on the right. It was no shock really that he instigated what turned out to be the winning goal with a break down the right before an expert cross found Jarrod Bowen who scored with a diving header. All afternoon he caused massive problems for Calafiori, and then his replacement Lewis-Skelly who came on early in the second half.

I was shocked when Arteta decided to replace Rice with Zinchenko, nominally a left back. I wasn’t expecting that. Our travelling supporters let loose with that decision with some chants aimed at our former captain. I don’t believe that Arteta is using Rice to get the best out of him.

The Arsenal fans were venting their frustration and then they were furious when Lewis-Skelly was correctly dismissed following a VAR call for bringing down Kudus. How poor was the referee to not show the red card immediately rather than having to wait for VAR? That was Arsenal’s fifth red card of the season. They have dropped ten points in the five matches where they have had a player dismissed. The gap to Liverpool increased to eleven points the following day when Slot’s team comfortably disposed of fading Manchester City. The title race, if it still existed, was definitely over.

Not that the red card really made a great difference. In many ways we were better against eleven than against ten. Lewis-Skelly is being talked about as a future England left back. I’m probably a bit premature but Ollie Scarles had a storming game and perhaps he will move on to such heights too. It’s a bit early I know but he does look a tremendous prospect.

For me Wan-Bissaka was the star of the show but Scarles, Ward Prowse and Kudus weren’t far behind. In fact it was a superb performance by all the players. Arsenal have only lost three games at the Emirates since the beginning of last season. We have won two of those. I wasn’t expecting that.

We now move on to Leicester who are (like Ipswich and Southampton) demonstrating the enormous gulf that exists between the Premier League and the Championship. They have lost six of the seven league games played in 2025; their only win came against Tottenham. In fact they’ve only won four games in the whole season. In addition to Tottenham they beat Bournemouth, Southampton, and in early December ourselves.

We went one down in that game to a very early Jamie Vardy goal and despite peppering their goal with shots and multiple corners we conceded two more before Fullkrug’s late consolation in added on time. It was Van Nistelrooy’s first game in charge. Had the Dutch boss dreamed of the perfect start to his tenure in the East Midlands he could scarcely have hoped for anything better than the move which led to Vardy’s opening goal shortly after the first whistle which stood after a lengthy VAR check.

If we put in anything like our performance at the Emirates then we should be too much for the ailing Foxes. But anyone who has supported West Ham for any length of time will know that this is the type of game where we have been known to fall down. However, I believe that Jarrod Bowen is really beginning to come into form after his injury layoff and expect him to be among the goals in a resounding victory. The pictures below show him in goalscoring form for West Ham against Leicester in recent seasons.

There have been some great games against Leicester throughout my time following West Ham, and in fact two of them made it into the top 20 games I’ve seen when I wrote my book, Goodbye Upton Park, Hello Stratford. The first one I’ll recall was on Boxing Day in 1967. I watched the game from my seat in B Block in the old West Stand at Upton Park. It kicked off at 11am (yes, there were morning games in those days), and by 11.15 we were 2-0 down. But the very first goal that I can remember a very young Trevor Brooking scoring, plus a superb hat trick from one of my favourite West Ham goalscorers, Brian Dear, ensured a great win in a very entertaining game. But the undoubted man of the match was a very young (17-year- old) teenager playing in the Leicester goal who had an unbelievable game and was destined to become a star in the future – Peter Shilton.

When we met Leicester on that Boxing Day we were 20th in the league and in a relegation tussle (although only two were relegated in those days). By the end of the season we had rallied somewhat and finally finished 12th; Leicester were 13th. Incidentally we visited Filbert Street four days later and won the game again, with the identical score, 4-2, with goals from Dear 2, Brooking and Sissons.

Another great game against Leicester came in the following season. On 16th November 1968 we were 7th having won our two previous home games 8-0 v Sunderland and 4-3 v Queens Park Rangers. It was amazing that we were that high in the table considering we had a run of 9 winless games from early September to mid-October. There were a few memorable games in that 1968/69 season and this one came a fortnight after the QPR game. I watched from the North Bank and, apart from being an exciting game it also included my all-time favourite goal scored by Martin Peters.

When I met Martin almost 40 years later at a book-signing I asked him to sign the programme for that game, as well as his autobiography. And what a lovely man he was, although he had no recollection of the game. He told me that he couldn’t really remember many of his goals. An early sign perhaps of the illness that was to strike him down at too young an age.

The goal was a fantastic move started by Ferguson in goal, the ball rolled out to Peters, then to Charles, then to Sissons, and finally a fantastic unstoppable volley by Peters who had run the length of the pitch virtually to get on the end of it. You can see the last part of the goal on YouTube from where Sissons crosses it, but unfortunately not the whole move. From our position on the North Bank we had a super view of the finish. We won that game 4-0.

Leicester have conceded four goals on five occasions so far this season including in two of their three games in the month of February, last week at home to Brentford and at Everton. In their seven league games in 2025 they have only scored three goals, the 2-1 win over Tottenham and another in a 2-1 loss to Aston Villa. In those seven matches they have conceded 17 goals. I’ll be disappointed if we don’t inflict another heavy defeat on them.

Pumping Up The Press Conference Volume and West Ham’s Hopes of Putting A Needle On Arsenal’s Unbeaten Home Record

West Ham’s stuttering season moves across the capital to face would-be title contenders Arsenal. An improved performance following last week’s shambolic display against Brentford is the least we should expect.

The most (or only) entertaining part of watching a West Ham pre-match press conference is attempting to match up the answers given with the media questions you haven’t been able to hear. There’s possibly be a new ‘Guess The Question’ game show format in there somewhere!

The club’s media team obviously don’t read – or aren’t interested in reading – the torrent of comments which universally condemn the inaudibility of the questions each time a presser is streamed online. In these days of digital communications, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, it wouldn’t be rocket surgery (sic) to install the necessary technology. Failing that a minion could be brought in to pass a microphone among the assembled reporters. Something to keep Danny Ings occupied, perhaps. The tin-pottery of the event does nothing to dispel the impression of a Board that is all show and no substance.

Graham Potter appeared a little less confident – less convincing – about what he was saying this time around. His customary grin not quite reaching his eyes, let alone his brain. Was it the enormity of the task facing his team at the Emirates today? Or a realisation that the whole idea of pre-match press conferences is largely futile where nothing of importance will be divulged? A case of going through the motions in response to essentially the same questions every week. Questions that could just as easily be answered by an AI support bot – ChatGP. “This or that player is still working on his recovery  or is not yet ready to play a full 90 minutes”; “We’ve had a good week on the training ground, the attitude in the squad is positive although there is plenty more work to do.”; “It’s a difficult place to go to and get a result, the opposition manager has done a great job.”

Today’s visit to Arsenal is a chance for the Hammers to contribute a minor supporting role in determining the destination of the Premier League title. The Gunners being the only team able to mount a credible challenge to runaway leaders, Liverpool. With a home win seeing the gap at the top close to five points – at least until tomorrow – the hosts need no more incentive to be motivated. Only the most optimistic Hammer would likely forecast an alternative outcome, even if away performances have generally been more encouraging than those seen at home. Unless that is, the backs-to-the-wall upset of last season’s 2-0 victory can strike for a second year in succession.  

The faint glimmer of hope in the game is Arsenal’s relative lack of quality in the final third. In their game at Leicester last weekend, they struggled to break down what is now the league’s worst defence until the closing stages. With several striking options absent through injury, it was shocking to see what a pale imitation of his former self Sterling had become. Only the introduction of Merino as makeshift striker finally turned the tide.

While the Gunners regularly fail to impress in attack, they are rock solid in every other department. The meanest of the league’s defences and a consistent, well-balanced midfield three that blends power, pace and artistry. An added irony has been the development of Lewis-Skelly and Nwaneri as first team players – two of the Arsenal side defeated by West Ham in the 2023 FA Youth Cup Final. By contrast, only Ollie Scarles from the victorious Hammer’s side has looked the part in east London.

For the trip to north London, Potter must do without the services of Lucas Paqueta who picked up an ankle injury in training and joins Michail Antonio, Crysencio Summerville, Niclas Fullkrug and Vladimir Coufal on the sidelines.

In each of the last two away games, the coach has opted for a 3-4-3 formation, and I wonder if he will be tempted to do the same again. Assuming a low block is against Potter’s instincts he needs to find some way to match up with Arsenal in midfield and minimise the influence of Odegaard and Rice. It’s a tall order with little in the way of pace, mobility and athleticism available to him.

Eventual team selection may depend on Potter’s assessment of whether Jean-Clair Todibo and Evan Ferguson are ready to start. That a player may be unable to last the full 90 minutes is no reason to automatically put him on the bench. If both are fit to feature, then it should be from the start. There’s no point in waiting until we are a goal or two down.

Fear of the Arsenal set piece threat may well convince Potter to persist with the lumbering Tomas Soucek in a midfield that includes Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse. What a woeful lack of creativity that would deliver. For me, Carlos Soler in the middle would provide a better, if not ideal, balance – but never stick him out on the left wing again.

A starting eleven perhaps then of Areola, Wan-Bissaka, Kilman, Todibo, Scarles, JWP, Alvarez, Soler, Bowen, Ferguson, Kudus. And more than a mere five minute cameo for Luis Guilherme please.

Arsenal boast the only unbeaten home record in the Premier League this season. The probability of that record being at risk this afternoon would appear very low. An encouraging performance is required more than anything and, who knows, we could add to the four draws that have already been witnessed at the Emirates in the current campaign.

Taking at least a modicum of momentum into Thursday’s home encounter with Leicester will be important; if only to dispel any lingering concerns over relegation battles. COYI!

I Can’t Believe It’s Not Potter

The Hammers are once again utterly beatable as Brentford slice through their defences like a hot knife. Has the chronic West Ham self-harm syndrome spread too widely for a simple cure?

Two brain teasers for you to start the day.

Question 1. If Team B (let’s call them Brentford) are adept at scoring early goals and Team A (West Ham, say) are prone to conceding them, what do you think might happen? Could it be that Team B race into an early lead which they are then easily able to defend?

Question 2. If Team B are known for playing on the front foot, with a high press and fast, direct attacks, how should Team A lineup against them? Would it be by deploying a slow as molasses double pivot and with no discernible attacking creativity or focus? Answers please on a post card.

The early FA Cup elimination had given the Hammers coaching staff just short of two weeks to prepare for Saturday’s game. A set of circumstances that makes their attempts at finding a solution all the more baffling. I would love to have a look at their workings. Even if the Rush Green VHS recorder had been on the blink, it is easy enough to google how Brentford setup to play every week.

Graham Potter still has a healthy balance of goodwill in the bank. He is personable, articulate, prepared to give young players an opportunity – and he is not Julen Lopetegui. Most supporters have been positive about his impact on and off the pitch although much of that is a sense of relief over what had been endured before. While it is still early days, the improvement in optics has yet to manifest itself as better results on the pitch. In fact, the opposite is true as a quick glance at the Under The Hammers New-Gafferometer (league games only) clearly demonstrates.

The Potter reign got off to a spirited, yet rather fortunate winning Premier League start with a victory over Fulham. Since then, the better, more committed, performances have been on the road. The last two home games – London derbys againsy Crystal Palace and Brentford – have been especially disappointing; and for large parts, no better than what had been witnessed earlier in the season. The first half on Saturday could easily have been mistaken for the typical chaotic Lopetegui lineup and performance.

I can’t be the only one who finds the Evan Ferguson situation a little weird. An emergency loan who apparently will need careful handling due to past injuries when there are only 14 games of the season left to play. He did show several decent touches when he came on at half-time and his first significant contribution really should have been an assist for a Mohammed Kudus equaliser had the opportunity not been squandered through a rush of blood to the head. I don’t doubt Ferguson’s potential but a ‘dry’ loan for an injured player is just so West Ham.

The half time change of shape allowed West Ham to dominate the ball for much of the second period. James Ward-Prowse provided the control and direction in a way that the excruciatingly slow Tomas Soucek is never able to. Take away his goal threat and the big Czech is largely anonymous. Yet, not quite as anonymous as Carlos Soler on the left wing who would have been more gainfully employed if given a flag and asked to run the line.

The Brentford goal illustrated perfectly why West Ham have one of the worst defensive records in the league. It all began from a West Ham corner on the right. Emerson went across to take, with the big men coming into the box as targets. The corner came to nothing. Brentford cleared to Damsgaard; Edson Alvarez attempted to close him down, but he was able to play a simple pass to Wissa whose run had not been tracked by Soucek. Even at that point though, West Ham had five players (Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Max Kilman, Dinos Mavropanos, Emerson and Jarrod Bowen) between ball and goal to Brentford’s two (Mbeumo and Schade.)

Wissa’s pass over the top was simple, Wan-Bissaka and Bowen stood and watched, Dinos was slow getting back in position, with Kilman the wrong side of Mbeumo. Emerson’s aerial challenge with Mbeumo was not strong enough leaving Schade unmarked to pick up the loose ball and score at the second attempt. A collective Sunday league failure to deal with a sraightforward counterattack.

The visitors dominated the remainder of the first half and there could have been no complaints had they gone into the break with a two or three goal cushion. The two ‘goals’ were rightly disallowed for offside but at least one of them might have stood had it been scored in the VAR-less FA Cup the previous weekend.

Although, the improved second half performance boosted the numbers for the unimportant statistics (possession, pass accuracy, number of corners) West Ham created few clear goalscoring opportunities. The glaring miss by Kudus and a blocked goal-bound effort from Ollie Scarles being the most notable. Flekken in the Brentford goal – who has been the Premier Leagues most overworked keeper all season – is unlikely to have enjoyed a more comfortable ninety minutes. The Hammers doing nothing to dispel the shot-shy reputation that Potter brings with him from Brighton and Chelsea.

It’s tempting to simply write the season off with a shrug – “we are where we are, and it is what it is” – but that risks throwing away a significant portion of the campaign. It is so very dispiriting. It’s not Potter’s fault that he has inherited a slow, ageing, unbalanced squad but he needs to find a way of at least creating some interest in the final months of the season – a reason to look forward to matchdays – or else it’s all just a waste of time and effort. If the players are incapable of playing the way the coach wants them to, then he needs to find a system that does suit. Surely, there is some way of harnessing the potential attacking talent available. Without that all that’s left is a team that appears to be going through the motions. Defeat we can live with; limp and effortless displays are unacceptable.

Next up is Arsenal. Hopefully, it won’t turn out to be as painful as I fear. COYI!

A poem which asks if the positive signs of progress under Potter can translate into results and a climb up the table as West Ham face Brentford.

It seems like ages since we last did play,
But with injuries plaguing, it’s been good to delay.
I’m fed up with hearing of Tottenham’s plight,
All clubs have unavailable players in the fight!

With a poorly balanced squad, it’s clear,
Injuries hit hard, that’s cost us dear.
Hopefully, some will return to the scene,
With Ferguson up front, a future bright and keen.

Out of the cups, fifteenth we stand,
No Europe to chase, but survival’s in hand.
Ten points clear of relegation’s call,
A calamitous run needed for us to fall.

With Potter in charge, progress we see,
Looking to next season, that’s the key.
Performances to cherish, up the table we’d love,
Maybe the top half, or ninth or above?

Facing Arsenal and Newcastle, tough matches ahead,
Brentford and Leicester, we could win those instead?
Brentford’s away record, second worst we know,
A chance to get closer with a victory to show.

Talent abounds, no doubt in my mind,
Ferguson, Kudus, Summerville, Bowen combined.
Paqueta, Ward-Prowse, Soler, and Soucek too,
There’s goals in that talent, oppositions will rue.

Ferguson’s arrival is a welcome sight,
Though later than hoped, it still feels just right.
Potter knows him well, a debut at Brighton,
But a straight loan deal, not sure that’s the right’un!

If he succeeds, Brighton may gain,
But West Ham’s joy will not be in vain.
Ward-Prowse’s return, I do cheer,
Goals and assists, he’ll surely bring here.

Irving’s emergence, a joy to behold,
Opportunities given, stories unfold.
Potter’s guidance, a thoughtful touch,
Fourteen games left, we expect much.

I like how Potter’s seen the light,
In academy talents, he’s got it right.
Scarles and Orford have joined in the dance,
Hopeful others too will be given their chance.

Criticism’s been made on the squad’s age,
With Potter in charge we’ll turn a new page.
Guilherme had a run out, a glimpse to see,
Skill and speed, he might just be?

The Chelsea game, we were unlucky indeed,
Bowen fouled, and offside we plead.
VAR took ages, goal two a deflection,
Our play restricted them but not quite perfection.

Defensively stronger, Potter’s made his mark,
Coufal and Cresswell a surprise renewed spark?
Kilman’s happier? Todibo’s next test,
Encouraged by Potter, can he show his best?

Tim Steidten’s departure, inevitable it seems,
Kyle Macaulay arrived with new dreams.
Sullivan’s control is recruitment’s fate,
Steidten’s reputation is now of late.

Brentford’s away record, once awful to see,
Five games were lost, but now two victories.
Last February, Bowen’s three silenced the din,
Six goals were shared in a 4-2 win.

Earlier this season, a draw we did claim,
Soucek’s equaliser to match Brentford’s game.
It’s looking much brighter so is there a reason
With Potter in charge a good end to the season?

West Ham face Brentford at the London Stadium. Can the positive signs of progress under Potter translate into results and a climb up the table?

It seems like ages since we last played. Perhaps that’s a good thing with all our injuries. I get fed up listening to all the woes surrounding Tottenham’s injury list. All clubs including ourselves have players unavailable all the time. With a poorly balanced squad this can be quite a problem as we have found out with, for example, injuries to our attacking players this season. Hopefully some of our injured players will be back and, with the addition of Ferguson up front I’m looking forward to the final fourteen games of the season.

In some ways there’s not a lot to play for as we are out of the cup competitions, we sit fifteenth in the league with no prospect of challenging for a European place, and we are ten points clear of the relegation zone so there are minimal fears of a battle against the drop. It would take a calamitous run of poor results from here in to get sucked into trouble and fall much further down the table.

But despite the results since he took over, with Graham Potter in charge there appear to be positive signs of progress. He can start to look forward to next season and with a lack of anything too much to play for perhaps the team can provide us with some performances to give us a more memorable finish to the season, pushing us as far up the table as possible, perhaps even into the top half, or even bettering last season’s finishing position of ninth, although this would be an unlikely achievement as we are probably too far behind.

The immediate future won’t be easy with both in-form Arsenal and Newcastle coming up in our next four games, so the visits of Brentford this weekend and Leicester at the end of the month will be important for our chances of moving upwards. Only Southampton have a worse record than Brentford away from home (although to be fair Brentford have won their last two) so this is an early opportunity to make inroads into gaining on the teams that are catchable. Brentford are just four points ahead at the moment and sit in eleventh.

It may be unbalanced but there is no doubt in my mind that we have a lot of talented footballers in our squad, especially in an attacking sense. With Ferguson, Kudus, Summerville, Bowen, Paqueta, Ward-Prowse, Soler, Irving and Soucek there are players of quality who can present problems to opposition defences.

It’s a shame that Ferguson didn’t arrive sooner in the transfer window but his arrival is very welcome. Potter knows him well, giving him his debut as a sixteen year old at Brighton, but many are unhappy that a straight loan without an option or obligation to buy means that if he is a success we will be developing him for Brighton’s benefit, and he will head back there to add to their attack or be sold at a huge fee. I’d like to think that if he is the centre forward we’ve been looking for we would be in for him at that point, but we can’t realistically look that far ahead. All we can hope for is that he loves it here so much that he is successful and somehow becomes a West Ham player permanently.

We had the chance to buy him outright it appears but declined the opportunity to do so. That could turn out to be either a blessing or a huge error, but we can’t worry about that now. With our past record of buying strikers let’s hope there is a happy ending. Over the years we have bought so many strikers with big names and huge expectations who just did not fit into the system that the manager at the time wanted to play. Surely Potter wanted him because he knew he would fit into the system he wanted to play, even if it is just for the next fourteen days.

I love the fact that we have recalled James Ward Prowse too. I know I am in the minority here and so many of our fanbase will disagree with me, but I am a fan and don’t believe he should have been loaned out to be replaced by Rodriguez or Soler in our midfield. I know my fellow writer Geoff has reservations regarding his return, but he does have an end product in terms of goals and assists. In 2023-4 only Bowen (16) and Kudus (8) exceeded his seven goals in league games, and nobody exceeded his seven assists. He won’t necessarily be a starter but will be more than useful in the squad and I’d like to think Potter wanted him back because he feels he can get the best out of him. I believe he could flourish now he is back.

There are a number of positives since the arrival of Graham Potter in addition to the acquisition of Ferguson and the return of Ward-Prowse. The emergence of Irving is one – it was good to see him getting the opportunity to start in our last game. To me he always looked good with his tiny cameos and he put in a very mature performance with his first outing in the starting line-up. Again, another who may not be a regular starter but one who I’m sure will be more than useful if given the opportunities.

I also like the way Potter seems to have realised the potential of using some of our talented academy players. Scarles and Orford have already been given chances in his brief time in charge and I am hopeful that others will too. There has been so much criticism about the age of the squad and this is a step in the right direction.

He also gave Guilherme a run out in the Chelsea game, and whilst you can’t make too much of his limited appearance he did show a couple of examples of skill and speed that perhaps will mean he will come good in the future. We paid £25 million for him and then he never got a chance (possibly for internal political reasons?). Let’s hope there is another one here who can be added to our attacking talent.

I thought we were massively unlucky to lose the last game at Chelsea. Bowen was undoubtedly fouled in the build up to their equalising goal in my opinion, and there was almost certainly an offside decision missed (that VAR took an age to consider) too. The winning goal was a lucky deflection. I thought that Chelsea’s performance was restricted by the way we played and were set up by the manager. We were well organised and closed out the spaces in midfield. With our influential players missing it was a really pleasing performance.  

One thing that has surprised me a little is how good we have been (or perhaps will become) defensively under Potter. Coufal and Cresswell, despite their limitations, seem to have got a renewed lease of life at the back, Kilman seems happier and I hope he can get the best out of Todibo too. If it is true that top European clubs wanted him then hopefully Potter can encourage him to demonstrate why.  

The departure of technical director Tim Steidten was inevitable once Kyle Macaulay arrived as head of recruitment. His days were numbered, he didn’t have a good relationship with either Moyes or Lopetegui, and Potter wanted his own man. His position became untenable. He came from Germany with a massive reputation and was lauded for some of his transfer dealings but in the end it was inevitable he would go. With Sullivan at the helm, nobody will ever have full control of recruitment at the club.  

Up until a year ago we had an appalling head to head record against Brentford losing the first five games against them after their promotion to the top flight in 2021. We finally put that right last February when we beat them 4-2 which included a Jarrod Bowen hat-trick, bringing his total to five goals scored against them. The game earlier this season at the Gtech Community Stadium ended in a 1-1 draw with Soucek’s second half equaliser cancelling out Brentford’s first minute goal, which is one of their specialities.

I’ve Got Those Lost Season and Blank Weekend West Ham Blues

Despite an uplift from the new manager appointment, the low key, lacklustre season will be one that is easily forgotten at West Ham. With little to play for the end of May can’t come soon enough.

So, here we go. Not in the Fabrizio Romano sense of the phrase to announce an imminent incoming transfer; but rather in resigned contemplation of yet another blank weekend of West Ham football. Early cup exits, international breaks and routinely exiled to the graveyard Monday night slot due to the absence of European competition, the Hammers will feature on a maximum of 29 of the season’s 41 weekends. They will play just twice in the whole of March, with those two games – at home to Newcastle and away at Everton – coming just four days apart.

It’s been a good many years now that TV has called all the shots on scheduling with little concern for the inconvenience to the matchday supporters who create the atmosphere for their product. More and more of Saturday afternoons are now 100% football free for the typical Premier club. Free from a lunchtime pint or two in the Central or Boleyn, a burger in a bun (no onions for me, mate) from the sizzling food stand, Percy Dalton’s peanuts (tanner a bag), golden goals ticket, the brass band playing on the half-way line, and half-time scores hung on the alphabetical grid behind the goals (that’s enough misty-eyed nostalgia for now – Ed!)  

During the course of this season, West Ham will play a total of just 41 revenue generating games, compared to 53 last term and 57 in 2022/23. Where Aston Villa have already earned an estimated €71m from their Champion’s League group games – and fellow strugglers Manchester United and Tottenham have pocketed €20m+ from the Europa League equivalent – the Hammers are poised to fall ever further behind in the rich league stakes.

And with little left to play for, apart from avoiding the highly remote possibility of being dragged into the relegation dogfight, it promises to be an underwhelming four months until the end of May. Less of a problem when football was an affordable, Saturday afternoon ritual with fellow supporters, friends and family; but less appealing now that we are customers with membership schemes and high ticket prices. As the old Queen might have said as she tucked into a portion of pre-match pie and mash, it has been a ‘seasannus horribilis’ at the London Stadium.

Last Monday’s match at Chelsea reached its inevitable conclusion when the hosts came from behind to claim their customary victory. If you read Richard’s preview you would have been aware how rare West Ham wins have been at Stamford Bridge in the recent past.

The West Ham versus Chelsea rivalry perfectly encapsulates the influence of money in football today. In the Football League, the Hammers statistically held the upper hand. Even in the early days of the Premier League – before the arrival of dirty Russian money in 2003 and the new low bar for football club ownership – the Hammers led the Blues with nine victories to eight. Since then, Chelsea have won 24 of the 38 league encounters. Of West Ham’s seven wins, one was at Stamford Bridge, two at Upton Park, and four at the London Stadium.

The game itself saw another patched up Hammer’s side put in a committed but ultimately fruitless performance. It was reminiscent of the Aston Villa cup game with West Ham’s holding a slender but comfortable lead, but losing the faith once the scores were levelled. Graham Potter gave an honest assessment after the game highlighting the effort, shape and application of his players but accepting they had not done enough with the ball themselves.

There was a welcome return for Jarrod Bowen but injuries to Lucas Paqueta and Edson Alvarez required adjustments to the starting eleven – the underused and undervalued Andy Irving putting in a mature performance for his first league start. While Bowen had made a text-book recovery from his fractured foot, Crysencio Summerville has joined Jean-Clair Todibo in the Rush Green treatment triangle where precautionary substitutions have mysteriously developed week by week into extended long-term injury absences.

Potter’s honeymoon at West Ham continues to hold good despite results not yet picking up. The massive turnaround in attitude and atmosphere since he replaced Lopetegui is clear to all, and we now see a team not resigned to its fate before a ball has been kicked. There have been extenuating circumstances with injuries but at some point, positivity needs to be converted into points. The six Premier League clubs who have sacked their managers since the start of the season comprise six of the bottom seven clubs in the current standings. The bounce isn’t always obvious and here is how they have performed pre and post the change in terms of points per game.

Monday evening also saw the slamming shut of the January transfer window. As usual, very little happened despite the daily speculation peddled on the made-up rumour sites – which have already turned their goldfish like attention to potential summer signings.  

I’m in two minds about the straight loan signing of Evan Ferguson. A potentially excellent striker if he can rediscover his fitness and the form of two seasons ago; but without any option to buy, the deal surely favours the player and Brighton more than it does West Ham. If we get him fit and he starts to knock in the goals, then great for time being but bigger clubs with bigger budgets will then be chasing for his signature. If he’s a flop, then it will all have been a waste of time.  

Also making a comeback at the London Stadium is James Ward-Prowse following a mostly unsuccessful loan period at Champion’s League chasing Nottingham Forest. No surprise he didn’t get much of a look-in at a team based on rapid transition and fast counterattacking. He joins a pool of older, slower, unadventurous midfield players – but at least he can take a decent corner. And perhaps he will finally equal that Beckham direct free-kick record. Despite any reservations I may have, I wish both players well whenever they turn out in the claret and blue.

The final expected news of the week was the announcement that Tim Stediten has left his role as Technical Director. It is not clear whether any replacement is anticipated or whether the entirety of the role is viewed as a failure. A clear vindication in the eyes of the Board for reverting to the shambolic system of boardroom meddling, agent influence and short-term thinking that has held the club back for the last 15 years. Lasting improvement is impossible until the club addresses its inability to adopt a long-term strategy and direction.

It is fascinating how widely repeated the narrative has spread that West Ham’s current woes are all down to Steidten’s recruitment. Not just from in-the-knows with cosy relationships at the club but also from the supposedly more thoughtful and balanced reporters at the Athletic and Guardian who have given a free pass to the most significant mistake of all – the disastrous appointment of Lopetegui by David Sullivan. The flaw of modern journalism where if you want access to the inside track, you mustn’t say anything bad about the source.

I’ve no idea if Steidten is difficult to work with or not, but he was set up to fail and was clearly not in full control of recruitment. He might have believed he was driving the transfer bus but in reality, he was the kid in the front seat on the upper deck imagining it to be true – until it hit the low bridge of the club’s ambition. The ironic thing about football transfers is that the number of people claiming responsibility is inversely proportional to how badly they work out.

Enjoy your free weekend. COYI!