Manager on Monday
WHUFC.com
A huge week ahead will determine how the Hammers approach a big game against
Aston Villa on Saturday
11.04.2011
Avram Grant wants his players to channel the hurt from the 3-0 loss at
Bolton Wanderers into next Saturday's crunch meeting with Aston Villa. The
Hammers had been on a high until half-time the previous weekend against
Manchester United, but have since conceded seven goals without reply and
lost two successive fixtures. The manager is determined to show this was out
of character with the resurgent side that went to Tottenham Hotspur on the
back of home wins against Liverpool and Stoke City. "We should feel low
because we lost a very important game and like myself, the players should be
frustrated and unhappy," admitted Grant. "But this should give us energy and
make us stronger for our next game against Aston Villa. We will learn from
this. "The players are very committed to the team and we can win three of
our last six games. I think we need to get to 41 points. Every game is hard
on paper but we have beaten Liverpool and drawn with Tottenham Hotspur."
Grant will have plenty to ponder. He should see Jack Collison get a second
reserve-team run-out on Tuesday night against Villa's second string at
Bishop's Stortford as well as his other fringe players, all of whom will
want to stake a claim for inclusion in the run-in. He will also hope Matthew
Upson and Scott Parker overcome the wear and tear of a long season that led
to their substitutions at Bolton, while Kieron Dyer is back from his loan at
Ipswich Town. "We need to look at the whole picture," the manager reminded.
"We have played well over the second half of the season and we have won our
battles and everything was going well. We must learn from Saturday. "I still
believe that we can stay in the league. What you saw in the first half at
Bolton is not something that you see every day in our team. It was an
exception."
This coming weekend will also see the club marking a Best of British
occasion, with SBOBET supplying Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research flags
with a patriotic feel and plenty of national pride on view. The manager
knows the supporters will be up for it and is backing his men to do the job
against a Villa side five points ahead in the table. "The fans have been
great and they've pushed us really hard as we've climbed up from very last
place in the league. We are not far from safety and we all need to go
forward together for the next game. We have always shown we have come back
well from every bad situation we have had this season and we will do it
again."
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Vinny's Bolton Report
Vinny - Sun Apr 10 2011
West Ham Online
Bolton Wanderers 3 West Ham United 0
Another dismal away performance saw West Ham slump to a 3-0 defeat at the
hands of Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium.
This was another in the long line of performances this season where the West
Ham players simply did not turn up. Tactically we were so far short of what
we should be it was painful to watch us make Bolton look like Barcelona.
I do not wish to take anything away from Bolton though as they were
excellent and had us sussed out from the very beginning. We had far too many
players hiding and the team selection decisions from Avram Grant contributed
to this awful performance.
The Reebok stadium is not a place where we ever seem to get a result (in
fact we never have won their) but I still went into the game thinking we can
get something out of it given our decent performances over the last couple
of months.
But we never got going and we made it far to easy for Bolton to score three
goals. The first goal was a good finish of course but the way we stood off
and allowed the shot was not the way Premiership teams should defend.
We are so prone to losing soft goals it is no wonder why we are where we are
in the league. It was also not good at this stage of the season to see Mark
Noble and Robert Green squaring up after the first goal was scored.
In the second half we took the game to Bolton but with the third goal coming
so early on, the game was over as a contest - if it wasn't already at half
time. We had chances, we didn't take them but make no mistake about it, we
did not deserve anything out of this game.
It was a glorious sunny day and it made the long trip to Bolton a little
easier. Last season when visiting the Reebok it was a freezing Tuesday night
in December where we put in what is now a traditional pathetic showing in
this part of the world.
Sporting my 1922 Season away shirt (I love it), I got in the ground earlier
than I would usually and watched the players warm up. I don't tend to take
much notice of the warm up but was intrigued at how annoyed Robert Green
looked as goalkeeping coach David Coles was putting in some crosses towards
him. Granted the crosses were wayward but Green was flapping his arms and
generally looking a little pissed off.
Avram Grant made three changes to the side who were beaten 4-2 at Upton Park
last weekend.
The most contentious of these came in defence at Right back as Lars Jacobsen
was dropped to the bench in favour of centre half James Tomkins. Grant had
made this change at Home to Stoke City a few weeks prior and had produced
good results given the type of football Stoke play.
In the attacking positions, Gary O'Neil was dropped to the bench with
Frederique Piquionne replacing him as a right hand side attacker. Robbie
Keane came back into the starting line up with Carlton Cole dropping to the
bench. This saw Demba Ba play as the central striker.
We never settled in the first half and Bolton were very close to finding
themselves in lead after just four minutes as a lack of urgency from our
defenders saw a cross put into the area for Kevin Davies whose turn and shot
was deflected into the path of Daniel Sturridge who turned and shot himself
with the ball flying just wide of Robert Green's goal when many of the
Bolton fans had thought it was going in.
From the resulting corner the ball was won in the air by centre half, Gary
Cahill but the attempt went just wide of the goal.
Bolton were quite clearly up for this game and we quite clearly were not.
The ball was being played out to the left to Martin Petrov and even from an
early stage it seemed as though James Tomkins was simply not going to cope.
From an attacking point of view we offered little but a good ball through
from Robbie Keane put Wayne Bridge in behind the defence and when it looked
as though the left back was about to pull the trigger and surely score,
Steinsson got back to make a very important tackle.
Bolton took the lead on 14 minutes after good build up and a dozy West Ham
defence. After Parker conceded a needless throw in, the ball was played
forward to Kevin Davies who of course won the head and a first time pass
from Lee gave the ball to Sturridge who was allowed to turn and curl his
shot beautifully past Robert Green.
It was a fantastic finish from a striker who is really in form but he should
have been closed down better by Da Costa or Upson and the reaction from
Robert Green said it all as he was going ballistic.
A few minutes later Sturridge nearly did the exact same thing as he was
again given time to shoot, this solely by Da Costa but the shot was low and
straight at Green.
Bolton really should have scored a second as the ball broke for Davies who
was coming in from the right hand side and he raced past Matthew Upson (yes,
this is Kevin Davies who is racing) but his shot was put wide when he really
should have scored.
They wouldn't have to wait long to find the net again and it was just a
minute later when Yong-Lee made it 2-0.
We were again stretched and a cross from Elmander found Martin Petrov whose
control wasn't great but he still put in a great cross for the Korean
Chung-Yong Lee to head past Robert Green from a few yards out. How he was
able to get into the area totally unmarked I cannot work out but it was
another poor goal to concede.
The travelling West Ham support could only look on in disgust as they were
watching their team fall apart away from home yet again.
A deep free kick put into the area saw Gary Cahill rise again but his header
went just over as Bolton looked more likely to score the next goal.
Elmander nearly did get that third goal when a good turn saw the Swede shoot
wide of the goal as our players looked totally lost.
As Petrov continued to destroy Tomkins it was the winger's cross who found
the head of Daniel Sturridge but his header was straight at Robert Green
when I had been expected him to bury the chance.
We offered nothing going forward and if anyone was thinking we could do
something similar like at West Brom a few months ago they would have been
following the wrong train of thought because against West Brom even in the
first half we had chances but had created nothing in the first period of
this one. Also another factor was that Bolton are decent defensively.
Avram Grant (who was watching the game the directors box following a
touchline ban) made two changes at half time.
Matthew Upson was replaced by a proper full back in Lars Jacobsen (Tomkins
went to centre half) and top scorer Carlton Cole came on for the dreadful
and largely anonymous Freddie Piquionne.
And we started well and nearly scored within just a couple of minutes when
Cole dispossessed Cahill and played the ball to Demba Ba whose shot was
turned around the post by Jaaskelainen although the offside flag had already
gone up.
Despite our bright start to the second half we were dealt the killer blow
which ended any faint hope that we may still grab something from the game.
Sturridge got the ball on the left, ran infield, was allowed all the time in
the world, got the ball on this left football and smashed it past Robert
Green. When watching the goal again it was just far to easy and you just
cannot defend like that at any level.
Hitzlsperger lost the ball in midfield as Muamba nicked the ball off him and
the midfielder fed Sturridge who looks poised to score his hat trick but
James Tomkins made a fabulous challenge to prevent the third. Tomkins makes
good challenges like this because he is a good centre half.
Bolton sat back from then on and we came forward quite a lot and looked
decent in some of our build up but never really potent enough to cause them
real problems. There were a few half chances and Robbie Keane was at the
centre of many of them as he was now playing just behind the front two in a
sort of diamond formation.
A cross into the area from Bridge after a short corner found the head of Ba
who did all he could with the header at goal but Jaaskelainen made a quite
wonderful save to tip it round the post when many of the West Ham fans were
just about to celebrate.
Daniel Sturridge fluffed his chance of a Hat Trick as Yong-Lee played the
ball over the top of our static defence for Sturridge to only have Green to
beat, but his attempted lob was saved by Green.
A decent move saw Cole knock the ball back for Noble but his shot went way
over the bar when he had to be hitting the target.
A ball forward to Demba Ba saw the striker control the ball, turn then take
a great shot which crashed off the post and away. It was so very unlucky for
Ba in a shot which seemed destined for the back of the net.
I think at that point you knew it was never going to be our day in front of
goal no matter how much of the ball we had in the second half. Avram Grant
can argue that there are positives to take from the second half but I cannot
understand why he can't work out that it was because Bolton were 3-0 and did
not need to attack in the same way they did at 0-0.
The decision to play James Tomkins at right back was based on the way we
thought Bolton would play. Bolton have over the years (especially under Sam
Alladyce) been looked upon as a team who like to play the long ball. Against
Stoke at Upton Park we dropped Jacobsen in favour of Tomkins at full back to
deal with the height they had and also the style in which they play.
But anyone who saw this game can see that Bolton Wanderers do not play that
way. They have some players in their team such as Petrov, Lee and Sturridge
who we would all happily have in the West Ham side because they are good
footballers.
How we came to the conclusion then that Bolton would play a long ball game
is beyond me. Maybe it was a one off and they just played passing football
against West Ham but I doubt it. This smacks of poor preparation or just a
terrible tactical error.
Also, the amount of times Scott Parker got the ball in midfield and had no
one to pass it to because we had no width and other players failed to move
was far to frequent. We needed a way to change the game and make it more
stretched so we cold find an alternative way to attack them but we had no
Plan B.
We were outplayed, outthought, outfought and out battled.
Whilst many will say they expected nothing out of this game I do not think
it is ludicrous to suggest that West Ham should be able to compete with
Bolton and get something out of the game. Given the position we are we need
to up our game against everyone and all this has done is make next week so
important we dare not lose.
Player Reviews
Robert Green
Had the hump all day long it would seem and I am not sure what he said to
Noble to make him react that way but it was not good to see.
James Tomkins
As a right back he was tore apart by Martin Petrov and looked truly awful.
At centre half he looked better but got turned by Sturridge on multiple
occasions.
Manuel Da Costa
Carried on from the second half against Manchester United in that he did not
looked commanding and put in a less than convincing display. Caught the
wrong side too many times, was easily brushed off the ball and seem to show
a lack of experience.
Matthew Upson
I've been full of praise for him in recent weeks but this performance (well
the 45 minutes he played) he was as bad as you could possibly imagine. Won
nothing in the air and his clearances were always poor. Dreadful.
Wayne Bridge
I thought he did well for the majority of the game. When we needed some
width, he was the only player willing to offer it and got forward as much as
he could.
Mark Noble
Not involved in the game and made very little impact. Too slow when he did
see the ball and failed to create anything. Seemed to be dead on his feet
after 20 minutes.
Scott Parker
Poor and like Noble had very little impact on the game. Was not able to get
close to the Bolton midfielders who created space well and played some nice
one touch football. Parker was anonymous for most of the game in one of his
poorest performances of the season.
Thomas Hitzlsperger
Gave the ball away too many times and was constantly caught in possession
when taking far to long on the ball and not being aware of what was around
him.
Frederique Piquionne
Not in the game, poor when he did get the ball and rightly taken off at half
time. I think we could all see that it wasn't working with him on the right
hand side after 15 minutes. Rightly taken off at half time and should stay
on the bench after this display.
Robbie Keane
He kept working was not very effective at all.
Demba Ba
Not much went for him and he failed to really get into the game. Needed to
work a little bit harder in closing players down but was unlucky with the
shot which crashed off the post.
Subs Used
Lars Jacobsen (on for Upson 45 mins)
On at half time and amazingly Petrov wasn't as good in the second half.
Carlton Cole (on for Piquionne 45 mins)
I thought he did quite well and we looked much more of threat up front. It's
a difficult one at the moment to know whether to play Cole or not being that
he is such an odd and frustrating player who has more fans who dislike him
than most. Still, if we are going to play this 4-3-3 formation he seems to
be the one who is better as the central striker.
Jonathan Spector (on for Parker 76 mins)
Not even super Jonny Spector could save this game for us.
Subs Not Used: Boffin, Gabbidon, Obinna, O'Neil
Bookings: None
Man Of The Match: Wayne Bridge
Bolton Wanderers: Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Cahill, Knight, Alonso, Lee,
Muamba, Petrov, Elmander, Davies, Sturridge
Subs: Bogdan, Robinson, Taylor, Cohen, Moreno, Blake, Klasnic
Attendance: 25, 857
Overall
When you mix poor preparation, poor tactics and players simply not turning
up then a 3-0 loss does not seem all that surprising.
Bolton were better than us all over the pitch and we did not get close
enough to them to prevent them from having so much of the ball (57%
possession). Under Owen Coyle they now have the ability to play passing
football as well as using players such as Elmander and Davies to give them
an edge in the air.
Looking at the team we put out we should not be losing 3-0 at Bolton. That's
no disrespect to Bolton, that more of a comment on the players we have in
our team. That team should be good enough to compete and on the evidence of
this game they are not.
Next Game - Aston Villa (h)
How many times this season have we gone into games saying 'this is must
win'. Because once again we find ourselves looking at a game which is the
start of 6 cup finals. I think we need 3 wins at least and considering we
have only won 7 games all season this seems a massive ask.
With the teams around us all losing this weekend we remain third from
bottom, just one point from safety. But we must beat Aston Villa because a
loss and then with Chelsea coming next could see relegation become almost
certain.
I cannot make a prediction either way to what will happen because the scope
of things seem to change every week. Confident one minute, convinced of
relegation the next. It all hangs in the balance but if we play like this
against Aston Villa this time next week my opinion will be firmly in the
negative camp.
It is going to be a hard few weeks to be a West Ham supporter.
There again, when is it not.
The View From Avram
"We started the game OK (er... Avram, we were 2 down in 20 mins?) but then
they scored the first goal and got the better of us before scoring another
one after that. Bolton dominated the first half and played very well.
"We started well in the second half but then they scored again and it became
very difficult for us. We created a lot of chances but we didn't score. It
was one of those days, when nothing goes how you want it to."
"Bolton are not in the relegation zone and they're not at the top either and
they were quite free to try to play football with a lot of good players.
They had nothing to lose. "We wanted to play differently but it was one of
those days when everything went against us."
"Even if it didn't look like it out on the pitch at times, the commitment
was there it was just that everything that we were trying was not working.
We had chances but we didn't score, yet Bolton did get goals from their
opportunities. It was one of those days but I don't have a problem with
their commitment.
"I need to see the game again but it's a fact that we didn't play good. We
started well but their first goal affected us. We were down and we let them
control the game. We lost almost every battle in the first half. That was
the key. We gave the ball away so many times and we have to pass the ball
with more quality.
"I still believe that we can stay in the league. What you saw in the first
half today is not something that you see every day in our team. It was an
exception."
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Where was the Grit, Motivation and Will to Win?
West Ham Till I Die
West Ham began the first half at the Reebok, exactly where they had left off
in the second half against Manchester Utd, the previous week. The midfield,
once again, failed to get a grip on the game and our defending was suicidal.
Just as Wayne Rooney benefited from the space afforded him, this week Daniel
Sturridge was the equally lucky beneficiary. For both of Sturridge's goals,
he was surrounded by claret and blue shirts, yet on each occasion he had
more than enough time and space to score with clinical strikes. The West
Ham players were in the right covering positions, for both goals, but why
on earth did one of them not press Sturridge or make a decisive challenge?
And the Lee header, for Bolton's other goal, was a bad joke. Just how did
our 6 foot plus central defenders allow Lee to steal in and win that header?
It should have been 'Operation Reebok,' with a organised, gritty and highly
motivated Hammers team applying themselves and securing a valuable result.
Instead, we got an absolute, bloody farce. It is a disgrace that the
magnificent travelling Hammers support was subjected to such a passionless
and inept first half performance. They deserve better, much better. I do
not know, for sure, if the West Ham players, coaching staff or the club
hierarchy read WHTID? I am told that the club are aware of the blog and
recognise it as a credible source of informed fan opinion. If they do, then
they need to heed a clear message that the performances, in the second half
against Man Utd and the first half against Bolton, are unacceptable if we
seriously intend to retain our PL status this season.
We certainly cannot afford another such unsatisfactory display. No one at
the club should need reminding that the club is engaged in a fierce battle
for its PL survival. So, one might ask, where was the corresponding grit,
motivation and the passionate will to win? Bolton are safe in the PL and
are on the verge of a FA Cup Semi-Final appearance at Wembley, yet it was
they who showed the urgency and the commitment to win this match. While far
too often, we looked like the disinterested party, playing out the remaining
fixtures of the season. Grant and the coaching staff need to improve in
terms of aspects of their team selection and tactics. But there is also
something else at play here. The attitude and application on the pitch is
not currently right. I expect to see West Ham players take the field who
are pumped up and ready to give 110% to the cause. The team is falling
below that level of expectation and they need to put it right quickly, with
six matches and 18 vital points to play for.
This team should not still be struggling to get out of the bottom three.
With international quality players like Green, Upson, Jacobsen, Bridge,
Parker, Hitzlsperger, Cole, Keane and Ba at our disposal we should be safe
by now. The excellent wins against Liverpool and Stoke City, and the gutsy
draw at Spurs, should have been the launch pad to climb to mid-table safety.
Instead, it is the far more limited WBA squad that have achieved this feat,
under the experience and astute management of Roy Hodgson. Indeed, Hodgson
exhibits the trait of all good managers, the ability to train, organise and
motive his players to give 110% on the pitch. Both the West Ham management
and the playing staff share responsibility for the last two results and they
must take urgent action to put things right.
We cannot afford to drop any points against Villa on Saturday. We still
have those three precious home matches against Villa, Blackburn and
Sunderland to secure our safety. In addition, we must target the Wigan
match for a crucial away win. Anything from Chelski or Man City would be a
welcome bonus. Eight from twelve points (two wins and two draws) from those
four target matches will give us 40 points and that would normally be enough
to guarantee safety. But who knows if 40 points will prove to be enough in
this crazy season? Ten points (three wins and a draw), and a total of 42
points, could prove necessary. And then there is the whole issue of goal
difference, it would be absolutely gutting to be relegated via an inferior
goal difference!
We can still survive, but we need to get back to the type of organisation
and form that we displayed against Liverpool and Stoke City. Our backs are
to the wall and there is little scope for further poor first half
performances. Yet, Wolves and Wigan look likely for the drop, Blackpool and
Blackburn are struggling and Sunderland are dropping like a stone. We are
not cut adrift and we have the winnable matches to save ourselves. However,
my worry is that some of our key players have shown signs of fatigue in the
last two matches. It is noticeable that Hitzlsperger and Parker have not
been so dominant in midfield. Indeed, I have been worried about Parker for
some time. He has been outstanding, and played at full pelt, for virtually
the whole of the season. But it would be a miracle if injury and/or
exhaustion did not catch up with him sooner or later. That's why I was
urging Grant to rest him in some of the cup matches earlier this season. He
could have recharged his batteries, during the recent international break,
but as we all know, his recent (long overdue) emergence as a solution to
England's midfield difficulties put paid to that. The problem is that we
really cannot afford for Parker to suffer burn out now, we need him on form
and firing on all cylinders. Lets hope that he still has enough left in the
tank for the run-in? While, Hitzlsperger's return from injury was
incredible, in terms of returning in that type of inspired form, after being
out for so long. But it looks like the pace of the PL might have belatedly
caught up with him? I hope not, we will have to see if he can have a major
impact against former club, Aston Villa?
I would advocate an attacking 4-3-3 formation this coming Saturday. I would
play Tomkins at centre-back against Villa, because we need his mobility to
counter the threat of Darren Bent. I would also select Jacobsen and Bridge
at full-back. In midfield, Noble-Parker-Hitzlsperger should start and I
would play Obinna alongside Cole and Ba, to form a three pronged strike
force. Victor Obinna has gone off the boil recently, after returning from
injury, but he possesses the vital creative spark that we will need to win
the forthcoming matches. We need to show faith in his ability and hope that
he repays that faith with goals and assists a plenty. It would involve
taking a risk in not including the work rate of O'Neill, but that is
opportunity cost! What we gain offensively we will lose in terms of
defensive cover, but we need to go for it on Saturday. The likelihood is
that Grant will adopt a more conservative selection policy, only time will
tell if that is the correct approach?
The spat between Noble and Green was not a good sign. For the first time
that I can remember, I found myself agreeing with Mark Lawrenson's comment,
on Saturday night's MoTD, that the Hammers players need to meet and get
things aired and sorted. Matt Upson, as Captain, should call a squad
meeting and get the players discussing the frustrations and problems in a
forthright manor. Then the players can get back to putting everything in to
uniting to deliver a win the crucial Villa match.
SJ. Chandos.
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Grant: FA look Twits over Cole rap
Published: Today
The Sun
AVRAM GRANT is stunned by the FA's decision to charge Carlton Cole for his
Twitter lark. The England striker is facing a ban for improper conduct,
having posted a joke about Ghanaian supporters being rounded up by the
immigration services after the recent Wembley friendly. Grant, serving a
two-match touchline ban himself, said: "I think the FA are in fighting mood.
They are charging everyone. But to charge Carlton with racism needs a big
imagination."
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Sorry, you can't hire Dyer
Published: Today
The Sun
WEST HAM will not let Ipswich retain Kieron Dyer until the end of the season
after his one-month loan expired on Saturday.
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Sturridge looks the finished article
Bolton Wanderers 3 West Ham United 0
By Chris Brereton at the Reebok Stadium
Monday, 11 April 2011
The Independent
The news of a West Ham loss would normally elicit an ironic cheer from those
punters residing in the Stamford Bridge area of London but Chelsea's fans
were likely not smiling when news of the capitulation of Avram Grant's side
filtered through.
Chelsea supporters, having watched their team scrape past the bottom club
Wigan, will have heard that Daniel Sturridge, their young player, was the
man responsible for putting West Ham to the sword.
As Nicolas Anelka, Fernando Torres and Didier Drogba continue to play like
strangers, the news that Sturridge, on loan at Bolton, was scoring goals
five and six for his new side invariably raised questions as to why his
manager, Carlo Ancelotti, had let him go.
"I think Daniel Sturridge can go and play in any team," said the Bolton
manager, Owen Coyle. "He is not 30 years of age, he is a kid who is going to
get better each and every year. It is my belief that Sturridge can go into
the Chelsea team tomorrow and score goals. That is my belief. Carlo
Ancelotti might look at him and say he is not quite ready yet. But I think
he is ready to play for me.
"I would love to have Daniel back next year but the way things are going, it
seems highly unlikely. If I thought I could sign him I would have done
already. But Chelsea aren't daft. They know the quality they have."
Sturridge's fine finishes, one in each half - with a Lee Chung-yong header
in between - enabled Bolton to amble past a West Ham side so poor that it
defied belief.
The aggressive spat between Mark Noble and Robert Green after Sturridge's
14th-minute opener - a wonderful, curled effort from 20 yards - was the only
indication that any fight remains at West Ham.
Their first-half defending was nothing short of an embarrassment, allowing
Sturridge, Kevin Davies, Johan Elmander and Martin Petrov to run the game
entirely. It felt like an exhibition and looked like a testimonial.
Lee's finish was preceded by a beautiful Petrov cross from the left, which
allowed the South Korean simply to head past Green to finish the game as a
competitive event within the opening 20 minutes.
Lee was perhaps the smallest player on the pitch. But, then, how tall do you
have to be when you are entirely unmarked?
The second half brought no salvation for West Ham. Sturridge doubled his
tally to kill off the contest before squandering two fine late chances to
complete a hat-trick.
Ironically enough, West Ham played their best when 3-0 down as Demba Ba went
close on two occasions. But the reason they played like a side doomed to
relegation is because that is exactly what they are.
Scorers: Bolton Sturridge 14, 51, Lee 20
Substitutes: Bolton Taylor (Lee, 79), Rodrigo (Petrov, 79), Klasnic (K
Davies, 82). West Ham Jacobsen 6 (Upson, h/t), Cole 6 (Piquionne, h/t),
Spector (Parker, 76).
Booked: Bolton Cahill.
Man of the match Sturridge. Match rating 6/10.
Possession Bolton 57% West Ham 43%.
Shots on target Bolton 12 West Ham 8.
Referee L Probert (Wiltshire).
Attendance 25,857.
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Mark Noble and Rob Green trade blows as cracks show at West Ham
Daniel Sturridge shines as Bolton outplay Hammers
Avram Grant says West Ham need to win three more games
The Guardian, Monday 11 April 2011
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a West Ham side on the brink of
relegation will slip into some form of civil war. However, compared with the
last time the drop came calling in east London, what went on between Mark
Noble and Rob Green was small beer. When, in 2003, a far more talented side
than the one Avram Grant presides over were sliding towards relegation, West
Ham supporters hounded Glenn Roeder in his own home.
It mattered not that their then manager grew up playing football opposite
the training ground at Chadwell Heath or that his brothers were season
ticket holders in what was called the Chicken Run at Upton Park. One day,
eight Aprils ago, Roeder collapsed with a brain tumour and, when he returned
to Upton Park with Newcastle United, his lasting memory was seeing the faces
of men, some older than himself, still twisted by hatred. The bitterness
between Noble and his goalkeeper that finished with one aiming a punch at
the other before being separated by their captain, Matthew Upson, will not
linger as long.
Neither man is likely to face disciplinary action by the club or by the
Football Association, who did not charge Green when, after keeping a clean
sheet in a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur, he made an obscene gesture to the
Upton Park press box. Frankly, for all the protection he was offered on a
hot, disastrous afternoon in the Pennines, Green might have wanted to knock
every one of his defenders out cold.
"I saw there was something going on," said the West Ham midfielder Thomas
Hitzlsperger, describing the seconds after Daniel Sturridge's wonderfully
struck opener. "I didn't know exactly what but I could see they were having
an argument. In the dressing room they shook hands and it's all sorted out.
"We can't afford to have arguments going on after the game, so that's a good
thing. The game is over now and we shouldn't be looking back, although this
was a terrible afternoon for us. We can't make any predictions about whether
we stay up or go down now but surely if we play like this it is going to be
tough."
In 2003, after an epic battle with Bolton to avoid the final relegation
place, West Ham, with Trevor Brooking at the helm, slipped under with 42
points. Grant, who because of a touchline ban watched the debacle from the
directors' box, thought they needed to win half of their remaining six games
to avoid history repeating itself.
The final three, against Blackburn Rovers, Wigan Athletic and an
out-of-control, freefalling Sunderland, seem winnable but, as Grant pointed
out, unpredictability is a motif running through West Ham's history. "The
team are low because they lost an important game," he said. "They need to be
not happy like I am not happy. But on paper everyone thought going to
Tottenham would be harder than going to Bolton. We drew there; we lost here.
Liverpool at home was hard on paper because they had big momentum at the
time but we won."
There was no question Bolton would win here. They were instantly,
effortlessly superior, with Owen Coyle converting his hulking striker, Johan
Elmander, into a holding midfielder with considerable effect. As he had with
Jack Wilshere last season, the Bolton manager has taken a jewel from one of
London's elite clubs and polished it. Chelsea are labouring for goals and if
they could end Sturridge's loan spell, they would. To say, as Coyle did,
that he might have scored five was not an exaggeration.
"It is my belief that Daniel Sturridge can go into the Chelsea team tomorrow
and score goals," said Coyle. "Carlo Ancelotti might look at him and say he
is not quite ready yet, but he is ready to play for me."
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