Tag: #wolves

Squad Game – The Challenge: West Ham Players Pushed To Their Limits In Search Of Euro Qualification

David Moyes has slowly painted himself into a corner by relying on just a small, trusted number of his squad. It’s an approach unlikely to sustain both Premier League and Europa League challenges in the coming two weeks.

As another season draws to a close its success (or otherwise) history will judge it on the final outcomes, not in the way they were achieved. As was the case last season, it might have been painful to watch but if there’s something shiny awarded at the end of it, much of the detail will be forgotten. The equivalent of Braveheart winning an Oscar.

With approximately six weeks of the season remaining, there are two obstacles standing between West Ham and failure. There is the ever diminishing possibility that they will claim a European qualification spot through league position, wherever that line is eventually drawn under today’s convoluted rules. And the even remoter possibility, that they make their way to and win the Europa League final in Dublin. Within the next week, the Hammer’s fate on both fronts may be permanently sealed.

Managers will often say they don’t prioritise one competition over another, but we know from past experience that actions speak louder than words. Then there is the unconscious appeal that playing in the later stages of cup competitions will surely have. Intentionally or not, Thursday’s visit to Bayer Leverkusen will be on everyone’s mind prior to today’s Premier League fixture in Wolverhampton.

The demands of an intensive run-in are not helped at West Ham by the small number of players in the squad that the manager is prepared to use and trust. With no squad rotation of note and minimal use of substitutes the consequence is certain players being flogged beyond their limits as the chasing pack look to overtake them. The team bus could even have a bumper sticker on it – Running In – Please Pass.

There was an obvious irony when David Moyes spoke about the difficulty of coping with Edson Alvarez’s suspension due to the club’s small squad size. Completely overlooking that this has been a deliberate strategy of his own making. Pablo Fornals, Said Benrahma, and Thilo Kehrer didn’t go missing in January, they were let go when inadequate playing time finally got to them. They had been alienated in Moyes system of favourites, just as Danny Ings and Maxwell Cornet have been since. The effective size of the squad in the manager’s mind is no more than 13 or 14 players. And the one player that Moyes did elect to sign in January was a defensive midfielder, the same as Alvarez.

It will come as no surprise that West Ham’s use of substitutes is one of lowest in the League. In stats prepared prior to the last international break, they had used an average of 2.79 subs per game. Only Manchester City scored lower at 2.75 – the sole statistic where Moyes can be mentioned in the same breath as Guardiola. In comparison, Brighton used 4.75 subs per game and 13 of 30 clubs exceeded 4.0. Moyes had only used all 5 subs once (in a fit of anger during the heavy defeat at Fulham) and opted for just one change four times – out of the ten times recorded in all Premier League games. The Hammers also had the oldest bench – the players on it that is, not the bench itself – and were last place in both the timing of the first change (67 minutes) and the average time of all substitutions. Over 17% of all West Ham changes happened after the 90th minute.

There was, however, a first in the Tottenham game, when Moyes made no changes at all. Perhaps chastened by his game changing switch at Newcastle, he opted to stick with what he had rather than risk Kalvin Phillips screwing things up again. In some respects, adopting a more defensive and cautious approach against top teams can make sense. After all, it was obvious Tottenham had few ideas on breaking though a low block. It is when the same tactics are employed against Burnley or Bournemouth that it becomes truly frustrating. On the other hand, fans deserve more to get them off their seats in the heat of a local derby under the lights. It’s fine to say you’re happy with taking four points from Tottenham in retrospect, but it can’t be justification or an intentional gameplan.  

I though there were two odd comments from the managers post-match . The first where Postecoglou kept repeating that West Ham are a big side. That’s not really the case, is it? Of the outfield players, only Kurt Zouma, Dinos, and Tomas Soucek are over 6 feet. In fact, it is one of the shortest squads in the league. The second was Moyes claim that his team had played on the front foot. Difficult to see how that stacks up for a side who had only 33% possession. Perhaps he uses a different definition of front foot.

Today, the Hammers meet another side who pooh-pooh the benefits or possession. Despite enjoying slightly more of the ball than West Ham, Wolves fall below West Ham on touches in the opposition area – although both sit in the bottom five for this metric. So, it will be interesting to see who takes control of procedings.

Gary O’Neil has done a fine job in his first season at Wolves. They looked to be in disarray when Lopetegui jumped ship in August, so to be in with a shout for a European place is some achievement. He will again be without Neto and Hwang to face the Hammers but should be able to give starts to Cunha and Dawson. Kilman and Lamina have always impressed when I have watched Wolves and it is side that rarely gives up.   

Typically, there’s little point speculating about how West Ham will line-up. It’s always the usual suspects. But with the Leverkusen game on the horizon, there must be concerns with the wisdom of featuring Zouma and Michail Antonio in both games. Angelo Ogbonna or Nayef Aguerd are options to replace Zouma, and the return of Alvarez may prompt a rejig that sees Antonio rested to the bench.

It seems no team wants to make the running in the battle for the minor European placings. It was all fairly inconclusive over Easter except for Chelsea’s win over Manchester United setting them up for a late charge. Of the other clubs involved, Bournemouth have the best form while both West Ham and Wolves have been consistently inconsistent. If the Hammers lose at Molineux it could see them drop into the bottom half of the table by the end of the current round of matches -having played a game more than the other challengers.

Richard provided an update on the projections of the Bennett supercomputer yesterday which describes what West Ham would need to reach the expected Euro qualification target of 57 points. Now, I know it’s never over until the fat lady sings but with just two league wins in 2024 to their name, a top ten finish only looks possible if Fujitsu can go in and edit the tables once the season is finished.

A 1-1 draw today. COYI!

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

West Ham regained some dignity with a fine performance against Freiburg in midweek. Now they face Wolves amid continuing speculation over manager David Moyes future.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

What West Ham performance will we get when Wolves visit the London Stadium on Sunday?

One like last Sunday at Fulham or a repeat of the excellent show on Thursday against Freiburg?

The Forrest Gump quotation suitably amended comes into play once again – “West Ham are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.” The debacle at Fulham last weekend was a shocker wasn’t it? A 5-0 drubbing and a terrible performance. Some fans writing on social media reckoned it was our worst ever. As a supporter for 65 years I would say that I’ve seen a few games like that over the years, but yes it was certainly near the top of the league of poor efforts by our team. A few excuses were trotted out regarding illness etc. but really there was little excuse for the shambles that we witnessed.

The following Thursday we had an important Europa League game against a German side higher in the Bundesliga than we are in the Premier League. They came into the game in good form with wins under their belt and as the top scorers in Group A, quite probably the top scorers in the competition as a whole. It was a one match shootout where we held the advantage (following our win in Germany) that a win or draw would see us top the group and go straight through to the round of 16 avoiding a potentially tricky two-legged play-off tie.

The West Ham team was changed a little in personnel from the weekend but totally unrecognisable in terms of performance. After a slow opening few minutes we turned on the style and entertainment that have been so lacking for the past year or more in the league. Not in Europe of course where we have won more games than any other team in European competitions (other than perhaps Real Madrid?). We joined an exclusive club of Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United, becoming the sixth English club to top their European league for three consecutive seasons. Does that mean we are now one of the elite big six?

Two superb goals came from Kudus and Alvarez who turned in a man of the match performance before being taken off when the job was done in the second half. I’m not a big fan of assist statistics but they do mean something when the assists are as good as they were in this game. Alvarez to Kudus and Bowen to Alvarez were both inch perfect and the goals themselves were a pleasure to watch. We came close other times too, Bowen a yard offside for one, the bar struck by Paqueta with a fierce right foot shot in the opening minutes, and an easy chance that Bowen should have buried. The whole side looked good before easing up in the second half with the game over and the introduction of the (mandatory) substitutes.

The TV commentator commented that Ings was very important in the dressing room at West Ham. Am I alone in thinking that perhaps he should stay there? The substitutions disrupted the rhythm and the entertainment ceased as the game headed towards its conclusion. Ings was a fine goalscorer before he joined West Ham. What has happened? Is it to do with him or the West Ham style of play? Answers on a postcard. At least Moyes got around the criticism of sending Ings on as a substitute before Mubama by sending them both on at the same time in this game. I can’t see that tactic being tried again.

On the whole a very pleasing and entertaining evening but what West Ham will we see when Wolves arrive on Sunday? Following Wolves promotion to the top flight five years ago they had the upper hand in encounters against us at first but in recent times we have come out on top winning the last three. There’s no way the game can end in a goalless draw that’s for sure. We haven’t had a clean sheet in the league since September; Wolves have only had one clean sheet in their last 24 away games.

The worrying statistics for this game include the fact that Wolves haven’t won a Sunday game in their past ten league games played on this day of the week and have lost their last six Sunday away games. Sunday certainly hasn’t been a day of rest for West Ham as this will be our 50th Premier League game on the day in not much more than two years! Apparently that is 13 more than any other club! And our record when playing Sunday games following a European match on a Thursday night isn’t the best is it? David Moyes also has a very positive record when it comes to home games against Wolves. His positive records often come a cropper though. Before last week’s game I wrote that Moyes hadn’t lost in the last 13 times he had faced Fulham. Oh dear!

I’ve absolutely no idea what to expect in this game. I just hope that we see the same West Ham that performed so stylishly and entertained us on Thursday night, particularly in the first half. Not a repeat of Fulham please. What are the chances?   

A Shot In The Dark: West Ham Travel To Wolverhampton For The Six-Pointer Goal-Shy Derby

A mighty six-pointer battle beckons at Molineux between two teams struggling to create and convert goalscoring opportunities. Who will take the three points and who will end up bottom three?

Another week, another game, and the prospect of another ninety minutes where David Moyes deploys exactly the same tactics in the hope of a different outcome. Yet again, we are faced with the familiar conflict of wanting West Ham to do well but recognising how hopeless the cause is without a change of manager.

A record of one point from a possible eighteen doesn’t lie. Previewing a match is becoming increasingly difficult when nothing ever changes. It is like being assigned to produce a weekly update on the fortunes of Sisyphus who in Greek mythology was consigned to roll a huge boulder up a hill for eternity.

Everything that is wrong with the current setup on the pitch has already been said over and over again. But for the sake of using up some column inches, let’s have a recap. The squad has been allowed to become too old. And it contains a serious lack of pace throughout. The over-riding game plan is not to lose – except against top teams when it is not to lose by too many. The keeper is among the worst with his feet in the league – yet the hurried pass back is one of our top-rated moves. The centre-backs most often look uncomfortable with the ball at their feet. The full-backs lack Premier League quality – and, in any case, are deployed far too narrow. There is nobody in the squad capable of playing the wing-back role effectively. Any attempt to press has been abandoned in favour of a ridiculously low block. There are never enough players in front of the ball to launch incisive counter-attacks. Movement off the ball is terrible and contributes significantly to poor passing success and ball retention. Players rarely take the ball in their stride or play on their toes . Imagination and creativity is missing in the final third. Wide attacking players are given too much defensive responsibility. The lone striker ends up isolated and gets drawn too deep or too wide, through a lack of support. Throw-ins are an invitation to return the ball immediately to the opposition. Corners either fail to beat the first defender or are floated into the keeper’s arms. There may be more. Other than that, we are in great shape.

There are many things in life that defy explanation – the ability of electrical wires and coat hangers to tangle themselves up, the reason your fingers get wrinkled in the bath, the surprising popularity of LInkedIn – but the owner’s belief that Moyes is the man to turn the season around trumps them all. The current trajectory leads to just one destination – the Championship!

Relegation can be in no-one’s interest. The only reasons to own a football club are for prestige and asset value. Both would take a battering by demotion to the second tier. The indecision over Avram Grant still rankles as one of the worst episodes of recent West Ham history. But the Board had terminated the services of both Slaven Bilic and Manuel Pellegrini by this stage of their final seasons – Bilic after eleven games in November 2017, Pellegrini after nineteen games in December 2019. Act NOW please, or we will never escape this hole!

Such indecision was not on show at today’s opponents, Wolverhampton Wanderers, where a managerial change was made prior to the World Cup break – eminently sensible timing for any struggling club.

The Wolves owners, who I believe are Chinese, have a strange obsession with the Iberian peninsular when it comes to player and manager recruitment. In the apparent absence of any available Portuguese managers, they were forced to turn their attention on this occasion to Spain when appointing Julen Lopetegui who had recently been sacked by Sevilla.

Another unusual aspect of the appointment is that in Lopetegui and Nuno Espírito Santo before him, they have now employed two former goalkeepers as manager. That is quite a rarity with the only other ex-keepers I can think of who have managed at the top level in England being Mike Walker and Nigel Adkins. Keepers area rather like drummers in rock bands. You obviously need to have one, but they are far too crazy and unpredictable to make any wider contribution.

Performances this season suggest today will not be a high scoring encounter. Wolves have scored just five times at home in the league, West Ham have managed just six away. The overall comparison of this season’s scoring and shooting stats (West Ham first) show: Goals (15 v 11); Shots (240 v 202); Shots on Target (62 v 56); Shots on Target % (25.8 v 27.7). West Ham have had the sixth highest number of shots in the league but have the worst on target percentage of anyone. A reflection of laboured ineffective build-ups that end with speculative long shots.

Some have seen signs of improvement in the past few games, but I have yet to be convinced. Those with a glass half full, might already be talking about being unbeaten in two. Although any 3rd round cup win is welcome, would it have ended that way if Frank hadn’t taken the unfathomable decision to rest so many key players.

I didn’t see Wolves cup tie at Liverpool where they are said to have played very well and would have won had it not been for VAR. I did catch them against Manchester United and it was apparent that they still lacked a cutting edge. No more obliging opponent than the Hammers for them to sharpen that on.

What to expect today? I’ve no idea, and really don’t know what to hope for so the current madness can be brought to a rapid conclusion. How about an unimagined 3-3 draw? COYI! 

West Ham at Wolves – the game to bring up the halfway point in a disappointing season

The wrong result and we could be in the bottom three

By 5 o’clock on Saturday West Ham will have reached the halfway point in our Premier League season, a couple of weeks later than in a typical campaign when this normally arrives between Christmas and the New Year. Has the break for the World Cup been beneficial following our poor run of results prior to the tournament? With just one point from three league games since then it would not appear to be the case. Although we did finally win a game last weekend with our 1-0 victory away at Brentford (reserves?) to progress to the fourth round of the FA Cup for a meeting with Derby County.

We will have played all the other teams in the Premier League apart from Newcastle, a game that was postponed following the death of the Queen. We will have played Wolves twice following our 2-0 home win earlier in the season. 19 games, 9 at home and 10 away. Whatever the outcome of this nineteenth game we will not have averaged a point a game which is a rough benchmark for retaining a place in the top flight for the following season. At the moment we have just a paltry 15 points from 18 games and sit outside the relegation zone on goal difference alone. By 5 o’clock on Saturday we could be in the bottom three if we don’t win the game and other results go against us. Everton in 18th face Southampton at the bottom. If we lose to Wolves and Everton win then we would be just one off the bottom in 19th. This demonstrates the importance of this game plus the one next week when Everton visit the London Stadium. Two losses in the next two matches would be almost unthinkable and would surely see a managerial change.

It’s a sad state of affairs for a team that has won eight consecutive games in the Europa Conference this season and finished sixth and seventh in the last two campaigns. Added to that the money spent in the summer (not very wisely it would seem) we would have expected to be in the top half of the table at the very least. But the truth is we would seem to have been found out and the manager appears to have a lack of tactical ideas to change things. The list of complaints against him from fans as outlined in my article prior to the league game at home to Brentford a couple of weeks ago is unchanged. They include:

  • losing the dressing room,
  • picking his favourites however poorly they seem to be playing,
  • a lack of tactical ideas,
  • no plan B or C,
  • setting up to not lose or to hold on for a win if we do get in front,
  • making strange substitutions,
  • making substitutions too late,
  • an inferiority complex especially regarding the top teams,
  • giving too much respect to the top teams especially when we are away (he has a poor managerial record against some top clubs never having beaten them away after numerous efforts),
  • turning good players into average ones,
  • buying players not suited to the club, the Premier League or his playing style,
  • opposition teams have now found us out and he has failed to adapt or recognise this
  • failure to give academy players a chance

Even at this stage in the season the Premier League table has a fairly predictable look about it. The so-called big 6 have been gate-crashed by Newcastle with the missing club being Chelsea who are having a poor season by their standards, currently down in tenth. It’s hard to look beyond Arsenal or Manchester City winning the title.

At this point there are four distinct groups of clubs in the table with the top two clubs in the first group on 44 and 39 points respectively. The second group, between third to fifth place, Newcastle, Manchester United and Tottenham are the leading chasers separated by just two points (35 to 33). The third group go from Fulham in sixth down to Palace in twelfth with just nine points between then (31 to 22).

Unfortunately, we are members of the fourth group like Saturday’s opponents Wolves. At the moment it looks like there will be eight clubs who are involved in the fight to stay up with not much to separate them. With still just over half a season to go it could change but at the moment the bottom eight are:

Leicester 17, Leeds 17, Forest 17, Bournemouth 16, West Ham 15, Everton 15, Wolves 14, Southampton 12

But taking a look at the form table (I’ve chosen the last six games) then the number of points gained by these teams in those is:

Leeds 8, Forest 8, Leicester 6, Wolves 5, Bournemouth 3, Everton 2, West Ham 1, Southampton 0.

The current league form highlights the predicament we are in; one we surely didn’t think we would be in as the season began. Our form in the second half of last season was perhaps a pointer as to what was about to happen, but perhaps we were fooled by the summer spending spree which seemed to give us a boost. International footballers (current or recent) from Morocco, Italy, France, Germany, Ivory Coast and Brazil were added to the squad but for one reason or another (add injuries and bad luck to the list of complaints against the manager?), the domestic season has so far been a massive disappointment.

Our overall record against Wolves in history is a positive one, and the recent record too, as we have won four of the last five games. But we did lose four in a row before then. But previous games mean little really. Bookmakers can barely separate us with Wolves at 13/8 very marginal favourites over ourselves at 17/10 with the draw at 11/5. That surprises me based on recent form, and much as I’m hoping we can collect a very important three points, I can’t see it happening. Two of the lowest scoring teams in the Premier League with just 26 goals between them (Leicester, also involved near the bottom have scored 26 on their own) are hardly likely to play out a 4-4 draw and I don’t believe there will be many, if any, goals. Perhaps two at the most in the game. Who will score them? I’ve no idea, but I hope we do. I’ll go for a close game, a 1-1 draw. That might just be enough to keep us out of the bottom three for the moment. But it might not. What are the chances?

Two Weeks To Save The Season: West Ham’s Fateful Fortnight Begins With The Wolves At The Door

The top four dream fades by the week. Can David Moyes wake up and shake up his Hammers for the visit of in-form Wolverhampton?

Before the season started my prediction for West Ham’s finishing position in the Premier League was 10th. I felt it would be a struggle to reproduce the previous seasons success alongside a European campaign. The most probable outcome now is that the Hammers will end up somewhere between 6th and 8th. In that context the team will have exceeded my expectations.

Of course, there is still time for things to change. A few weeks ago, most were certain of Manchester City winning the title at a canter, with Norwich, Watford, and Burnley dead certs for relegation. Now, Liverpool are piling on the pressure at the top while Leeds (how did we lose to them), Brentford (how did we lose to them) and Everton are being dragged into the battle at the bottom.

For a team sitting in the top six and still in two cup competitions, there is plenty of disquiet among Hammers supporters. A combination of poor results, mediocre performances, and a shambles of a transfer window. It is easy to understand. They showed us a dream of the top four but complacency has it looking unattainable. As the song lyric by James put it: “Now I’ve swung back down again, it’s worse than it was before, if I hadn’t seen such riches, I could live with being poor.”

Whatever happens between now and May, the next two weeks will be pivotal to how we remember the 2021/22 season. The sequence starts with today’s match up with close rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers, then an FA Cup visit to in-form Southampton at fortress St Marys, followed by the perennially fruitless trip to title-chasing Liverpool, and rounded off by the Thrilla in Sevilla ©.

A variety of factors seem to have contributed to the West Ham slump. Individual loss of form, playing with injuries, fatigue, and opponents working us out are among the most obvious. Ultimately all come back to a ridiculously thin squad and a bench that the manager doesn’t really trust. There are just not the options for rest, freshening things up or trying something different.

I still believe that David Moyes has done a fantastic job considering the position he found us in. But just like Leeds are discovering, a change of plan is required when Plan A isn’t working. Thankfully, Moyes Plan A isn’t as bad as Bielsa’s.  

The issues with the squad should clearly have been addressed in January but weren’t. There are too many limitations to play anything other than a counter-attacking game, even if we have some fine individual players. Genuine width and pace down the flanks, the ability to go past an opponent, the basics of pass and move, a dead-ball specialist are all in short supply. Adjusting the 4-2-3-1 (which is increasingly overrun in midfield) to a 3-5-2 or 4-3-3 look equally problematic. Something needs to change but nothing obvious sticks out.

Will there be any adjustments to the side that failed to impress against Newcastle? Ben Johnson in for the injured Vladimir Coufal, I would think. Possibly one of Manuel Lanzini or Pablo Fornals dropping into a midfield three with Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek. Leaving a front three of Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio and Said Benrahma (or Nikola Vlasic). It might improve the balance in what is likely to be a tight and cagey affair.

Wolves are in a fine run of form despite their late setback in midweek at Arsenal. Back in November, Wolves ended West Ham’s four match winning streak when Jimenez scored the only goal in an otherwise uninspiring game. In many ways, the Mexican is the ideal hold-up player in a team that score few, but concede even fewer. Manager Bruno Lage now has further options upfront with the long-awaited return of the impressive Neto providing competition for Hwang and Podence.

Nothing suggests to me that it will be anything but an afternoon of hard labour for the Hammers. Little threat to the Wolves goal was on show at Molineux other than hopeful long-range pot shots. Will it be any different today? Antonio’s customary Row Z skier, Benrahma’s curling it past the post, and Bowen hitting the bar. There is always a set piece, I suppose, and an early goal can easily change the complexion of a match.

As much as I would like to see a perfect Craig Dawson hattrick, I think this game might ending goalless. COYI!   

A look ahead to West Ham at Molineux this afternoon and memories of games against Wolves (mainly November ones!)

Thank heavens that is the last of the early season pointless international breaks finished. I get it that we have to play for World Cup qualification but surely someone can devise a better way to do it. I don’t wish to deny San Marino, Andorra or any other minor nation of their opportunity to take part but surely there should be some kind of pre-qualification among lesser teams and then the top teams from pre-qualification leagues can then progress to face the bigger teams. Our very own FA Cup is an example of how this can happen. The top teams don’t enter the competition until the third round proper. There are a number of qualification rounds to win through before the non-league teams who are successful in those get to face the big boys.

Albania aren’t exactly a minor footballing nation, picking up quite a few points in the group, but San Marino? I watched some of this and quite frankly it was a farce. The commentators and pundits did their best to talk up the England team and Harry Kane, but it was nonsensical as a game of football, it was really just attack versus defence. I got no pleasure from the twenty minutes or so that I watched.

This was in contrast to the last Premier League game I saw where we denied Liverpool the opportunity to extend their long unbeaten record any further. I thought it was a magnificent performance that saw us leapfrog the Merseysiders to reach the dizzy heights of third place in the table. Unlike Mr Klopp I saw nothing wrong with our first goal. Goalkeepers have been a protected species for too long and I don’t see anything that says you can’t jump in front of them to put them off. And as for suggesting Cresswell should have been sent off I don’t agree with that either. His tackle clipped the top of the ball which lifted his leg to foul Henderson. To his credit the Liverpool captain made nothing of it and was soon back on his feet. A foul yes but anything more? Not for me. Perhaps I am a biased Hammer but others I have spoken to who support Arsenal, Fulham and Norwich didn’t agree with Mr Klopp either.

We have lost Angelo Ogbonna for a long period now, but personally I am happy with Craig Dawson alongside Zouma at the heart of our defence. There have been reports that we might renew our interest in Tarkowski in the forthcoming window. He is certainly a quality player, but do we need strengthening elsewhere first? Perhaps with our new Czech shareholder there will be an injection of finance to boost the transfer kitty? We’ve never been in a better position to challenge the top teams but the addition of two or three quality players would do us no harm in our endeavour to maintain that challenge in the league and the three cups that we can still aim for.

We visit Molineux today to take on a Wolves team that are in eighth place in the chasing pack where sixth to thirteenth positions in the table are separated by just three points. When I began to watch football as a young boy in the late 1950s Wolves were probably the best team in the country at the time, and were league champions in 1957-58 and 1958-59. One of my earliest football memories was our first home game following promotion to face the champions in our first home game of the 1958-59 season. I wasn’t there but I was excited to wake up on the Tuesday morning following the Monday night game to be told the result by my dad and to read of our 2-0 win in the morning paper.

The following season I was at our game against the champions – Saturday November 21st – so this weekend’s game is almost on the same date. My first favourite footballer Johnny Dick scored a hat trick in our 3-2 victory that retained our position at the top of the league. The following Thursday I went into St Mary’s hospital in Paddington to have my adenoids removed. And then in typical West Ham fashion we lost 7-0 at Sheffield Wednesday the following Saturday! How many times has a team at the top of the league lost their next game 7-0? Only West Ham could do that. That was a season when we went down with the Christmas decorations and finished in fourteenth place just four points above the relegation places.

Wolves went on to finish second in the table that season finishing a point below champions Burnley. They won the FA Cup too beating Blackburn 3-0 in the final and were so close to being the first team to achieve the league and cup double. If only they hadn’t lost to West Ham!

Other highlights from games against Wolves include an entertaining 3-3 draw in November 1970. Apart from surrendering a 3-1 lead my main reason for remembering this game was a Bobby Moore headed clearance that hit the referee square in the face that knocked him out cold. Moore picked up his whistle and blew it to stop the game. Bobby Gould, who five years later played for us tapped in the late Wolves equaliser in that game.

Two years later (yes in November once again!) we were 2-1 down at Upton Park in the last seconds of the game when a Bobby Moore cross was headed across the edge of the area by Clyde Best, and Trevor Brooking equalised with a stunning diving header from fully 15 yards. It’s always said that Trevor never scored with his head, but I can remember quite a few, including an important one in the European Cup Winners Cup in 1976 against Eintracht Frankfurt, and perhaps the most famous of all, the Wembley header in the 1980 FA Cup final.

Two years later once again in the month of November (are you picking up the pattern here?) we gave Wolves quite a thrashing (5-2) with five different goalscorers. The best goal of the lot, and one of the best free kicks I’ve ever seen was a result of Trevor Brooking flicking the ball in the air and Frank Lampard (senior of course) smashing a half volley into the bottom corner of the net.

I’ll deviate from the month of November with a final memory from the past to remember Liam Brady’s final game before retirement. After a fantastic career he spent his final three seasons at West Ham. Although he wasn’t quite the player he was at his peak, he was still great to watch with wonderful skill on the ball and magnificent passing ability. On as a substitute late in the game he picked the ball up midway in the Wolves half, moved forward, and unleashed a trademark left footed stunner that rocketed into the net, a fitting goal in his final ever game.

Last season we did the double over Wolves winning 4-0 at home and 3-2 at Molineux. What with our 3-2 win over Liverpool in our last game too, that seems to be the score of the moment and I’ll predict a win by that score today. We are around 7/5 favourites to win the game and around 22/1 to repeat last season’s score in the corresponding fixture. Jarrod Bowen scored in both games against Wolves last season, and is around 13/2 to score the first goal (same price for the last goal too) in the game, or 5/2 to score at anytime. One of those will be my fun bet. I might even combine Bowen scoring the first goal with a 3-2 win at odds approaching 200/1. With 12 points from our last 4 league games we are the form team in the Premier League. No other team matches that recent record. If Leicester can beat Chelsea in the lunchtime fixture, and if we can win at Wolves, then we would be level on points with Chelsea at the top of the table on Saturday evening. That would be good, wouldn’t it? What are the chances?

West Ham Love To Go A-Wandering; Can They Make It Five Wins In A Row?

The Hammers continue their adventures in the unchartered waters of the Premier League’s top four. Victory against recently becalmed Wolverhampton will see them on the crest of a wave.

The international break has given us all an extra week to admire West Ham’s lofty position in the Premier League table with a sense of smug satisfaction. Now comes the test as to whether they can stay the course – a furious run of ten games leading up to Christmas starting with a visit to Molineux on Saturday afternoon.

The Hammer’s form has been nothing less than remarkable in the opening months of the season. The only side in the division to win their last four games, unbeaten in seven games in all competitions – and unbeaten in eleven on the road. The last defeat coming in the last-minute to Brentford in early October. 

It was disappointing that post match reporting on the pulsating victory against Liverpool was overshadowed by contrived controversy over supposed game changing refereeing decisions. There was so much to appreciate about the game as an advertisement for the Premier League and yet the referee took central stage. Most of the blame for that lies with Jurgen Klopp who showed himself to be the most ungracious of poor losers.

It was an excellent West Ham win which once again demonstrated the tenacity and character present in David Moyes’ side. That the top sides finish games knowing they have faced a tough, resilient, and talented opponent is all we can ask.

We probably shouldn’t be doing this, but it is tempting to make comparisons with the 2015/16 season – the year Leicester City won the Premier League title. The image below shows the table after an equivalent 11 matches. Leicester were sitting third behind Manchester City and Arsenal (having earned a point less than West Ham have now) with the Hammers hanging on in sixth place. Had we not just gone done to a disappointing 2-0 away defeat at Watford, things would have looked even rosier for Slaven Bilic’s side.

The noticeable feature of 2015/16 was that as well as Leicester performed, each of the other title contenders managed to screw up their own challenge. None of the other teams performed consistently well during the remainder of the season. Adding to the mystery, both Liverpool and Chelsea were nowhere to be seen, finishing eighth and tenth respectively.  The chances of such a collective failure repeating itself is highly unlikely.

A look at this season’s current standings with a projection based on points per game being maintained to the end of the season has West Ham finishing on 79 points. That would be an incredible achievement – but unlikely to be enough to claim top spot. I doubt there are many supporters who truly believe a top four finish is achievable, but it is target worth aiming for. The recently announced investment in the club by Daniel Kretinsky certainly adds a new perspective on things, especially if it is backed up by player reinforcements in January. A long way to go, though!

Assuming all the players have returned from the international break in fine fettle, the only change for the Wolves game will be the one enforced by the probable long-term absence of Angelo Ogbonna – Craig Dawson being the obvious replacement. It is anticipated that Declan Rice will have recovered from illness and Pablo Fornals from the knock picked up playing for Spain. The Ben Johnson or Vladimir Coufal at right back is the other talking point. I believe it is Johnson’s shirt to lose.

It was great to see Michail Antonio make his mark on the international stage at long last, with two fine goals for Jamaica. Whenever he shapes up for a long shot my head is usually in my hands, but the strike against the USA was a cracker. Shots from outside the box are the least productive of goal attempts – it is seen as a defensive positive to limit your opponent to long shots – but when they come off, they can be spectacular. Will we now be treated to a flurry of long-range Antonio efforts? And what is the probable outcome? It’s a long shot, but it might just work!

Wolves are a side slowly emerging from the doldrums of Nuno’s time at the helm. New boss, Bruno Lage, is something of an unknown quantity as a manager with only an ultimately unsuccessful stint at Benfica behind him in the big time. Still, he met the exacting criteria required for the Wolves job by being Portuguese.

The Wanderers have had a mixed opening to the season. After a sluggish start they have climber to eighth in the table but have only faced Manchester United from the top six. Their five wins have been mid to lower table affairs against Watford, Southampton, Newcastle, Villa and Everton. Presented as being more adventurous than under Nuno, goals have been at a premium at both ends in their matches so far this season. Only games involving Southampton have witnessed fewer goals.  

There was sad news from Molineux in the week with the death of Wolves legend (and member of the 1966 World Cup winning squad), Ron Flowers. I can remember him well from the very first football game I watched live on our newly acquired black and white TV – the 1960 FA Cup Final. A well-deserved Ron Flowers tribute will take place prior to Saturday’s kick-off. This looks like another tight game to me. Wolves have some dangerous players including Jimenez, Hee-Chan and the perpetually erratic Traore. Not convinced about them at the back. The ideal scenario is that Wolves push forward and fall into the trap of the breakaway Hammers counter-punch. And there is always the set piece danger. It is a game where if West Ham keep their discipline, they can come away with a narrow one-goal victory to make it five league wins on the trot. COYI!