When Carlo Ancellotti was sacked by Bayern Munich the other day, my heart skipped a beat. I recalled the time when it was reported, or maybe manipulatively leaked, that Karen Brady was after the Italian a few years back. Every sense of logic and common sense told me that replacing Bilic with Ancellotti was an absurd pipe dream of the highest order. But I decided to ask a friend of mine who knows the former Milan, Madrid, Chelsea, and now Bayern manager if there was any reason for me to fantasize.
No was the pretty succinct answer.
I made my feelings about Slaven Bilic known after the Newcastle match. While many agreed with me, and with Sean Whetstone in his rather controversial piece the other day, there were those that expressed….displeasure, shall we say….with both of us. Sean took far heavier punches than I did, I must admit. Just imagine if Nigel Kahn had let either of us feel his wrath!
There was a healthy dose of irony in the starting eleven to me. When we were chasing Andy Carroll after his loan spell, I remember the almost minute by minute updates on Twitter. I genuinely believed signing him would virtually guarantee we wouldn’t ever have to look over our shoulders. Once that bubble burst from his almost comical injury list, I always thought his return to the lineup would be the panacea to all that ailed us. That has all changed. So when the original projected lineup today did not include him, I was pleased. Then Arnautovic caught my son’s ear infection or what have you, and there he was. Number Nine. And my spirits dropped. Which may be unfair, but that’s how I felt. Then there was a clamor that Bilic was going to set us up 4-4-2, but I wasn’t so sure. When things seem obvious for us, it never happens. Today didn’t go according to plan, but at least it ended well.
West Ham asked the first question in the fourth minute when Cresswell sent a cross into the box. Antonio met the delivery near the far post and slammed a volley into the ground. It bounced high and towards the far post, forcing Fabianski into a diving save with his right hand.
The next ten minutes were a little worrying in that Swansea had more of the possession by some margin, and when the home side did get the ball they either ran wildly with it, eventually losing it, or sent a pass to nobody. It culminated in the 15th minute when Bony received the ball just on top of the West Ham 18 yard box. Fonte and Reid backed off, and Bony let it go. Hart made a diving save, and the contest thankfully stayed at nil-nil.
By the time we hit the halfway mark of the first half, the crowd at The London Stadium sounded restless. With good reason I might add. Swansea had enjoyed 70% of the possession, and West Ham looked rather dire. Bilic switched Antonio and Ayew on the flanks, but it had so little impact it took minutes for me to notice the change. Passes were terrible, touches were made of lead, and the side looked genuinely lost. Against a side with more quality, it could have been a much uglier scene. I looked for things to be optimistic and hopeful about. The Blueberry pie from a terrific local farm that the wife was bringing home later came to mind immediately.
From the perspective of clutching at straws, West Ham at least made everyone pay attention in the 37th minute when Antonio sent a long pass to Carroll on the right wing. Not exactly where you want Carroll to receive the ball, but whatever. Carroll crossed to Ayew in the box, not exactly where you want Ayew to receive a high cross, but whatever. Ayew sent a weak header that Fabianski cradled like a stuffed animal, but whatever.
West Ham looked a bit better in the final five minutes of the opening half, sending in a few crosses for Carroll and Company to chase. We even won a corner. Thank heavens for small favors.
Halftime
West Ham 0
Swansea 0
If you wanted a highlight that described West Ham this season so far, Mark Noble’s complete mis-kick in our penalty area at the start of the second half would be perfect. And in all fairness, Noble played well against Spurs and wasn’t as awful as the rest of the side in the first half today. So I wasn’t having a go at the captain.
In the 53rd minute, I thought West Ham were going to open the scoring when Antonio looped in a cross from the right to the far post. When Carroll began his run to meet the ball, I thought he would get there. In the end, he was half a yard short. Would that signal an upturn in fortunes on the day? Time would tell.
The crowd went from restless to openly annoyed in the 58th minute when Ayew lost the ball while attempting a run into the Swansea penalty area, which was followed quickly by an awful cross from Cresswell, which was then followed by Noble losing the ball when West Ham were on the offensive. It was all going quite badly at that time, and West Ham needed a spark. Something to give the crowd a reason to liven up.
Cue Manuel Lanzini for Noble. I would have taken Ayew off, but what do I know?
By the 70th minute, something dawned on me. Despite playing the 4-4-2 so many were asking for, I couldn’t recall Hernandez seeing the ball. At all. Which only added to my concern about what I was watching and what we were in store for the rest of the season. This squad should look at least like a competent Premier League side, and we didn’t by a country mile.
In the 75th minute, West Ham were extremely fortunate to not go down one-nil when Olsson ran the ball from the left to the top of the West Ham penalty area and tried a curling shot on goal. If there had been more curl on that shot, it would have gone in because Hart was beaten. The fact I was ready to accept an abject nil-nil draw at that point wasn’t a good omen.
I scared the absolute life out of my poor cat in the 86th minute when Masuaku sent a low cross into the box that Carroll got a little touch on and curled a shot towards goal. Fabianski didn’t move, and the ball looked to move in slow motion as it floated and then banged against the post. I slammed my fists on the desk holding up my IPad, causing it to fall down. My electronics looked a lot like my team.
If there has been one man on West Ham that has made a difference when he has come on this season it has been Masuaku. The past few matches have seen him deployed as a substitution on the left side of midfield. He has shown skill and endeavor, particularly with his crossing. In the 89th minute, he made a run down the left that looked almost exactly like the one he did last week to set up Kouyate’s goal. Today, he delivered a ball that beat two or three Swansea defenders and Sakho was there to tuck it in to the top corner of the net.
Final Score
West Ham 1
Swansea 0
“What a good change from the manager. Well done the manager. Great change. The manager has made an inspirational decision for me” said Tony Gale. I’d add the Sakho inclusion to that commentary, because those two made the difference to me. And despite the concerns that remain for me about Bilic, he was the man that made those changes so he must be applauded for them.
There was a very famous basketball coach and executive for the Boston Celtics named Red Auerbach. Think of him as the Fergie of basketball. He won more NBA Championships than I can even count. One of his best players, and one of the best players in the history of the sport was John Havlicek. And he almost never started a game. In fact, the NBA has an award for the best “Sixth Man” that was created in his honor. Auerbach used to say he didn’t care who started a game for him, that it was more important who finished it. Maybe Bilic could borrow that ideal and twist it a bit because for me the eleven who finished the match deserve to wear the shirt in two weeks. Or maybe not.
I’m just happy we won.