West Ham Till I Die
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Tony Hanna's Musings

Gutted, Fuming and Amazed

Last week was not a great week for West Ham. A week littered with off field problems that proved just how much turmoil there is at the club at present and raised more questions about our current ambitions. To be fair the owners delivered on a right back and a proven goal scorer earlier in this transfer window and that was what most fans wanted. But, to be honest I was absolutely gutted when we failed to sign William Carvalho. Despite all the smoke and mirrors, this was one player that Bilic wanted and the owners failed him. Not many top quality players will come to West Ham as we can’t offer them Champions League football. Here was a player, already playing CL football, and he wanted to join West Ham. Nearly all the teams that play us know they can stop us playing out of the back by using the high press. We end up hoofing the ball up field to Andy Carroll – oh wait, he isn’t there is he? Carvalho is just the quality ball playing defensive midfielder we needed- and how. I can only imagine that our owners have already printed Bilics P45 and are just waiting a few more games so that they can appoint their dream manager, Rafa Benitez, on the promise he has 40m to spend in the January window?

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It is well documented now that we were hours away from appointing Benitez in the summer of 2015, but Real Madrid came knocking and everyone understood why he had to choose the Spanish giants. What is probably not as well known, and this is information given to me at the time, we were actually in talks with Rafa at a different point of time, many months before – during Sam’s reign. He chose not to come. Perhaps the time was not right then as well? But it is now looming large that it may be 3rd time lucky – depending on what your view of a Benitez managed West Ham may look like? Personally, I still hope Slav can turn our season around but it is more in hope than expectation.

Then of course there was the Sakho incident. Trying to force a move “Odemwingie” style. I was gutted about Carvalho, but I was fuming about Sakho. This for me was a new low in how today’s players can show so little respect to their club and its fans. When it happens to West Ham, us, it hits a raw nerve. The player has hardly played in a year, yet the club have picked up the bill. His goal (non) celebration against Cheltenham told it all really. He doesn’t want to be at West Ham and it shows. So why did we not accept any offers for him? We could have used the money to clinch the Carvalho deal. Payet didn’t want to play for us either and we accepted a “measly” 25m for him on the basis it would make for a toxic atmosphere around the club if we kept him. Why didn’t we force him (Payet) to stay too? Or more pertinently, why didn’t we just sell Sakho as well and keep up the tradition of ridding ourselves of players who don’t want to play for West Ham? It is not like this was his first dummy spit or indiscretion.

If all that was not bad enough we then had Robert Snodgrass taking a pop at Bilic following his loan move to Aston Villa. No need to go into the full transcript here as I am sure you have all read it or got the drift. The very unimpressive Snodgrass was played out of position apparently? “The manager didn’t know my best position when I signed, despite paying 10m quid for me?” Well, Snoddy should add short term memory loss to his list of failings because I can remember plenty of times he was played in his preferred position, and he was still pretty awful then too! Despite all the complaints though, one thing that the player did say really got me questioning my thinking regarding Bilic’s pre-game tactics. Snodgrass said: “I was coming on against City and he (Bilic) said “Where do you want to play, on the left or right?”

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The questions I would be asking here are not only how much thought went into the signing of a 10m pound player but how much thought went into the match day tactics? Now I would have thought that any PL managers preparation would have entailed studying our own players strengths and weaknesses as well as our opponents? Perhaps coming up with a game plan to match? Certainly not “left or right son?” Snodgrass was introduced into that game in the 64th minute to replace Obiang, but his true replacement in a double change was Feghouli. Any preference that Snodgrass may have given Bilic at that time will have influenced where Antonio played for the rest of the game! Really? To be honest I am amazed by this revelation. Now, I know we were 3-0 down at the time, but this smacks of Hackney Marshes not the Olympic Stadium. I realise wide players can and do swap during games but I wonder if this example further shows that too many things are far too relaxed at West Ham? In recent games it looks as though we have been sending eleven players out onto the pitch to just get on with it best they can. Perhaps we should not be surprised that what we are sowing at present is actually what we are reaping?

We as fans always look forward to the start of any new season. It is a time where we can start with a clean slate and with the optimism that new players will gel us into a better team. But just three away games into this new season and we are bottom of the table and filling the tabloids with bad press. This weekend’s game against Huddersfield is massive. It wouldn’t matter who we are playing, a win will go a long way to turning a toxic mood into something a whole lot better. It won’t completely alleviate all of our problems but it will be a start. According to reports Bilic has a full squad to choose from, barring the suspended Arnautovic. There will be a few players that may still be a bit ring rusty but I can’t remember us having so many of our best players available at the same time? If we don’t win on Monday night the least the fans expect to see is some cohesiveness back in our play and a very determined effort. Huddersfield are yet to concede a goal this Premier League season and it will not be easy.

As Hamburg Hammer quite rightly wrote in his Monday column – “The owners, just like the manager and players, are merely temporary features of West Ham, custodians on borrowed time. Our fans will still be there, long after Gold, Sullivan and Brady have packed it in, sold up and moved on to pastures new.” He is spot on the money there. I have been supporting this club for over 50 years and many of them have been littered with poor signings, poor managers and a plethora of disappointing seasons. I feel for our younger supporters who have seen us win nothing of note. At least my generation saw us win some Cups. What other club could at best finish 8th in the league with three World Cup winners in it? What other club could play in the 2nd tier of English football with the likes of Brooking, Devonshire, Bonds, Martin, Lampard, Parkes and Stewart in their side? What other club could squander the talents of Joe Cole, Frank Lampard, Rio Ferdinand and Michael Carrick all before their prime? Yet each new season we lock ourselves in for another ride despite the likelihood of further disappointment. Each bad season seems worse than the last bad season but perhaps memories are short?

We all live this ride together. I have never met a person yet who told me “I used to support West Ham.” Let’s just hope next week is better than last week!

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