Daily WHUFC News - 5th December 2017

Rice: We were unlucky not to beat Man City
WHUFC.com

Declan Rice feels West Ham United were unlucky not to get the three points against Manchester City but reckons the Hammers' performance proved that some people had the wrong perception of the team. It took a late goal from City's David Silva to give Pep Guardiola's team the victory after Angelo Ogbonna had headed the Irons in front prior to half-time. Nicolas Otamendi had equalised for City just after the break. Despite losing the game Rice could find a lot of positives in West Ham's showing and the defender also feels his side's efforts went against what some pundits and football supporters expected to see.
"Without a doubt, there were a lot of positives to take from today's showing," The 18-year-old told whufc.com. "I think a lot of people thought we were down and out before the game even started. You read silly things and people seemed to believe we were going to come and get beat. "But I thought we were excellent today. We need to be putting in that effort every single week. We were just unlucky today. No one even thought we would score. To go 1-0 up at half-time at the Etihad – they are top of the league. It was a good moment for us. "We went in from the first half buzzing but we knew there was still 45 minutes to go. Second half, it just wasn't meant to be."

Despite ultimately losing the match on Sunday Rice thinks he and his West Ham teammates need to focus on the things that went well, and take those forward into the coming games. He added: "I think we just need to look at the positives. We've got to get into training on Monday, watch the game back, look at the positives and take that. That's the minimum every week now. That's the standard that we need to be setting every week. There's a lot to take from it."
The match with Manchester City marked Rice's first start for West Ham since David Moyes took charge of the team, with the Irish youngster relishing learning from the experienced manager. Rice was thrilled to get the nod to play at the Etihad Stadium and feels the experience of featuring against City's attackers – who have fired the team to the top of the Premier League – is one that he can learn a lot from. "I'm loving training under David Moyes and his coaches," Rice continued. "To get the start here, I never thought it would happen. Luckily, with the injuries, he's believed in me and he has put me in, and I was happy with my performance. "I'm only 18-years-old so to test yourself against the likes of Aguero, De Bruyne, Jesus and Silva, I'm only going to learn and get better from it. Today was a fantastic experience for me."

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Tottenham Hotspur away moved to Thursday 4 January
WHUFC.com

West Ham United's Premier League trip to Tottenham Hotspur will take place on Thursday 4 January. The fixture will be broadcast live on Sky Sports, with a kick-off time of 8pm. The fixture had originally been provisionally scheduled for Sunday 31 December however, despite significant work by all stakeholders, the Safety Advisory Group at Wembley Stadium could only recommend a maximum crowd of 43,000. This was due to transport issues, primarily at local tube stations whose resources were being deployed elsewhere across London on New Year's Eve.

Following extensive discussions between stakeholders, a decision has been taken to move the fixture into the New Year so more supporters, home and away, can attend the game. Ticket and allocation details will be confirmed in due course.

We would like to apologise to supporters for the delay in confirming details for this fixture and for any inconvenience this may have caused.

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Hammers learn FA Cup third round opponents
WHUFC.com

West Ham United have been drawn away to Shrewsbury Town in the third round of the FA Cup, sponsored by Emirates. The Hammers will travel to the New Meadow for the first time over the weekend of 5-8 January 2018 following Monday's draw. The two clubs have never met previously in the world's most-famous knockout competition, and have faced one another just four times in total, all in the old Second Division. Shrewsbury won both meetings in 1979/80, before West Ham won both the following season on their way to promotion.

West Ham have won the FA Cup on three occasions, in 1964, 1975 and most recently in 1980, and finished as runners-up in 1923 and 2006. The Shrews have never lifted the famous trophy, but did reach the quarter-finals in 1979 and 1982. Hammers boss David Moyes has compiled a positive FA Cup record during his long and illustrious managerial career, winning 17 and losing just 13 of the 37 ties he has been in the dugout for. The Scot led Everton to the final in 2009, where they lost to Chelsea, and the semi-finals in 2012.

A date, kick-off time and ticket arrangements for the tie will be confirmed in due course. Supporters should bear in mind that West Ham's Premier League fixture at Tottenham Hotspur has been moved to Thursday 4 January. The FA Cup final will be played at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 19 May 2018.

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SAB meeting and fan feedback leads to positive improvements
WHUFC.com

West Ham United are delighted to confirm a number of new, positive initiatives for our supporters, following recent feedback from the all-new Supporter Advisory Board and other fan groups.

As part of the continued commitment to improving the overall supporter experience for West Ham United fans, both on matchdays at London Stadium and in general, the following actions have already been approved and organised with immediate effect:

Coverage of Sky Sports channels to be televised on the screens located around the inner concourses at London Stadium on matchdays, for two hours prior to kick-off, during the half-time interval and for one hour after the final whistle.

The trial of a new method for away match ticket sales that will see 10% of away allocations reserved for Season Ticket Holders and Claret Members, regardless of their accrued Priority Points or previous booking history. The Club have also committed to taking the full allocation for all away matches during this trial, up to and including the trip to Brighton and Hove Albion on February 3. For more information, click here.

Sponsorship of the Hammers Supporters Club's new matchday venue at Stour Space, enabling the original and oldest supporters club the opportunity to invest much-needed funds to secure its future. Click here for the full story.

The tidying of the memorial garden on the site of the Boleyn Ground, along with a new commitment to manage the ongoing maintenance of the garden on a monthly basis. Additionally, the Club are in continued discussions with Upton Gardens developers Barratt London about future landscaping plans and will shortly launch a consultation plan with families to ensure a long-term solution that all West Ham United fans can be proud of.

A commitment to work with supporters to ensure that the Boleyn Ground's rich heritage and history is further recognised at locations around London Stadium, with artwork in place for the start of the 2018/19 season.

The Supporter Advisory Board enjoyed a hugely positive and constructive first meeting of the season at London Stadium recently.

The new SAB sees an even broader representation from the many different sections of the Club's large and diverse fanbase, including young supporters, senior supporters, women, families and away match-attending supporters.

This is in addition to the members already representing large groups, such as WHUISA, Pride of Irons, Club London, Bondholders, the DSAB and large online communities, along with representatives from the different seating areas at London Stadium.

The two-hour meeting was chaired by Vice-Chairman Karren Brady, who praised the dedication and commitment of members that has ensured continued improvement to the overall supporter experience since the Club moved to London Stadium last year.

SAB members Cathy Bayford and Trevor Bright, who represent ambulant disabled and wheelchair-using supporters and chair the separate Disabled Supporters Advisory Board, gave a presentation on the fantastic work and progress made by the DSAB in recent months, while members were also shown the diversity and inclusion video, recently created to signal the Club's devotion to providing an environment and positive matchday experience for all supporters.

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Help local families feel part of the community this Christmas
WHUFC.com

Stratford Circus Arts Centre are raising £12,000 to make Christmas a magical one for hard pressed families in Newham who otherwise simply wouldn't be able to afford a seasonal treat for their children. Full Hearts, Full Tummies will offer 600 hot meals and tickets for festive show The Ramshackle House for just £1.

Two in five children in Newham live in poverty, with their families facing increasing challenges during winter. Full Hearts Full Tummies gives families an opportunity to come together and forget their worries, socialise and share in this joyous experience.

Please Get Involved!

Full Hearts Full Tummies relies solely on your donations in order to make this festive season a magical one for the children and families of Newham. Please consider donating this Christmas.

One donation, twice the impact!

Thanks to The Big Give from noon on Tuesday 28 November until noon on Tuesday 5 December or until the money runs out, The Big Give will match your donation (any amount up to £5000), making your gift go twice as far at no extra cost to you. Remember, only donations made in this time will be doubled!

Please donate here: https://secure.thebiggive.org.uk/donation/to/65464/27440/stratford-circus-arts-centre/full-hearts-full-tummies

Contact Mia, Development Manager via email: mia@stratford-circus.com if you'd like to further support Full Hearts Full Tummies.

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Westley hoping to mark Luton return with Checkatrade win
WHUFC.com

Terry Westley will return to Kenilworth Road for the first time in 22 years when West Ham United take on Luton Town in the first knockout-round of the Checkatrade Trophy on Tuesday. Westley joined the Bedfordshire club as a Youth Coach before he became First Team manager in the Spring of 1995. Back then, as he is now, Westley was responsible for the development of a number of young players from the academy setup.

Former West Ham and England defender Matthew Upson is one of a long line of players who benefitted from the guidance and coaching of Westley during their teenage years. And 22 years on, Westley still has fond memories of his time at Luton Town. "I spent many years at Luton as the coach and then also as former manager before I left," he explained. "It's club that were in the Championship under David Pleat when I joined as the Youth Coach, we had a wonderful time in terms of the players we produced who went on and played at the highest level."

After defeat to Wycombe Wanderers last week, West Ham's U21s finished second in their Checkatrade Trophy South group and, despite still qualifying, missed out on a visit to Forest Green in this next round. Instead, the trip to Kenilworth Road is their reward.

Westley is extremely proud of his side for achieving qualification from the group stages, and despite a difficult November which saw the Hammers fall to four successive defeats, he is excited by the challenge of taking on another Football League opponent. "It'll be an interesting game, they're top of League Two so it will be tough but that is the level these lads want to be competing at.

"I'm looking forward to going back and I hope the players look forward to going there and putting on a spirited display."

image: http://www.whufc.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/GettyImages-173764616.jpg

Elliott LeeThere will be a further element of interest with Luton now the home of a number of former West Ham Academy graduates.

With this the first time the two clubs have met at any level since March 1994, it will be the only opportunity many of the ex-Academy players will have had to play against their former club.

"There will be a few of our former lads playing, Dan Potts, Olly Lee and Elliot Lee," Westley said.

"It is not just because of my connection with the club, but there'll be an edge to the game in terms of the West Ham connection too.

"Everyone's really looking forward to the tie and hopefully we can come out on top and progress to the next round in a tournament we have taken seriously this season."

Westley worked closely with forward Elliot Lee from 2014-2016 while his brother Olly, Dan Potts, Pelly Ruddock and Marek Stech are all ex-Hammers from before Westley joined the club.

Hammers supporters who want to support the U21s on Tuesday can purchase tickets in advance by calling 01582 416 976. Away fans should request tickets in the Oak Road Stand.

Tickets will also be available to purchase on the night of the game from the Oak Road turnstiles and they are priced at £5 and £1 for adults and concessions respectively.

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Pep Guardiola 'learns lesson' from Manchester City's win over West Ham
BBC.co.uk

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says the 2-1 win over West Ham showed him how to unlock packed defences that are "almost impossible" to break down. For the second time in three matches, City came from behind to extend their winning run to 13 Premier League games. Guardiola brought on Gabriel Jesus to partner Sergio Aguero in attack for the second half, with Kevin de Bruyne operating deeper in midfield. "I learned to attack a bit differently," said Guardiola. "Normally we don't play with two strikers and two wingers. Maybe to attack this kind of defence it is much better. "They didn't want to play. When they lost the ball, they didn't press. They just went back with 10 players in the box. It has happened the last three games. It is almost impossible."

Last Sunday, City rallied to win 2-1 after conceding the opening goal at Huddersfield before netting a late winner against Southampton at home three days later. In both those games, Raheem Sterling got the late goal but on Sunday it was David Silva who scored in the 83rd minute after Nicolas Otamendi cancelled out Angelo Ogbonna's goal for West Ham. Victory meant Guardiola's side re-established their eight-point lead over Manchester United, who they play at Old Trafford on Sunday (16:30 GMT). City's victory also equalled the longest winning run within a top-flight season, matching Sunderland and Preston (1891-92), Arsenal (2001-02) and Chelsea (2016-17).

Argentina striker Aguero and Brazil forward Jesus have started just two games together since September, having combined more regularly in the season's opening games. But Jesus' half-time introduction against West Ham in place of defender Danilo paid dividends and Guardiola seems likely to revisit the tactic.
"With two strikers in the box, we can play the same way, with the same patience and the same quality. It is good news for me in the future," he said."How we attacked in the second half was much better."

Guardiola is also adamant he is "preparing a team to win" this week's Champions League match against Shakhtar Donetsk, despite City having already qualified for the next stage and the Manchester derby being four days later. "Hopefully no-one will have injuries. I said to the players the guy who doesn't want to play in Donetsk, let me know please," said the Spaniard. "It is a big opportunity to win 18 points from 18 points. Kevin [de Bruyne] will have two or three days off, he is suspended. The best way to prepare for the United game is by playing good."

'A real chance' for West Ham

West Ham manager David Moyes was impressed with his side's performance against City and believes they have "a real chance" of avoiding relegation.
The Scot has only picked up one point since succeeding Slaven Bilic, and the Hammers remain second bottom of the table, three points from safety. Moyes was particularly impressed with the "effort and energy" of his players as they held out for almost 60 minutes against one of the Premier League's most potent attacking sides. The Hammers were defensively solid and threatened to score before and after the first-half lead given to them by Ogbonna - with Diafra Sakho firing wide in the dying minutes. "We missed two good chances in the first half and had one right at the end," said Moyes. "We tried to stay in the game and play on the counter attack. Defensively we did a great job. "I always think we will get away [from the relegation zone]. I don't think we will be in trouble. I think we have a good team, good players. "The only [game] that has been a disappointment was the Everton one."

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Tottenham v West Ham: Fixture moved to 4 January for safety reasons
BBC.co.uk

Tottenham's New Year's Eve game against West Ham at Wembley has been moved to 4 January because of safety concerns. The Premier League made the decision after the stadium's management limited the crowd for the original date to 43,000, less than half the capacity. This was due to transport concerns, as resources at nearby tube stations are being deployed elsewhere across London. The match, to be played two days after Spurs visit Swansea, will kick off at 20:00 GMT.

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#REFWATCH: MIKE DEAN – MANCHESTER CITY VS WEST HAM
AUTHOR: SAMTWHWREF. PUBLISHED: 3 DECEMBER 2017 AT 8:35PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by @SamRoyden

Last season, I described Mike Dean as 'oozes arrogance and his admiration for the spotlight' and my opinion has not changed. Mike Dean continues to frustrate me with his game and player management. I completely appreciate that Mike Dean is a seasonal pro in the Premier League and was on the FIFA list between 2003–2013 until he turned 45 and was retired from international duty, but confidence is completely different to arrogance.

It was a first half to remember for West Ham and David Moyes: Drilled, hard to break down and breaking with the ball – not consistently but it's a platform to build on. It could have been a nightmare opening 70 seconds for West Ham when in-form Raheem Sterling went down inside the West Ham penalty area. Mike Dean, who was officiating his first West Ham Premier League game this season, was in the perfect position to wave away appeals from the Manchester City players. This decision was actually quite straightforward for Mike Dean, Sterling felt the slightest of touches and hit the deck, a blatant attempt to deceive the referee. No free kick nor punishment from Mike Dean and play continued.

With West Ham defending extremely well against a petrifying Manchester City front three, Declan Rice was the first player to receive a caution after bringing down Leroy Sane who was 10 yards into the West Ham half. It was the correct decision from Mike Dean and with 73 minutes left on the clock, Rice had to watch his challenges for the rest of the game.

Consistency is huge for referees and it's something that is widely discussed, especially at elite level. Nicolás Otamendi was the wrong side of Arthur Masuaku when he cynically tripped the West Ham man. Mike Dean was spot on to award the foul but there was no further punishment for the Man City defender. Mike Dean cautioned Declan Rice earlier in the half for tripping Sane in a similarly promising position, so why didn't Dean caution Otamendi? It's a lack of consistency and it wasn't for the first time during the game, this season or in fact as long as I've been watching Mike Dean.

Throughout the second half, West Ham had their backs to the wall defending well and Mike Dean continued to be frustratingly wrong with his decision making. The Manchester City players are known for their theatricals and this was proved with Sterling diving in the second half, with playmaker Kevin De Bruyne and overrated Fabian Delph, both who also embarrassingly deceived Mike Dean. The free kick, which infuriated me the most, was Fabian Delph's dive when Declan Rice committed himself into a sliding challenge 20 yards from goal. It was such a clear and blatant dive, I cannot come to grips on how Mike Dean came to that decision when he was behind the play and took up a good position. It's the theatricals that Mike Dean failed to judge and the second phase of that free kick led to Man City's equalising goal.

I do welcome a review from The FA and wonder whether they will take any retrospective action on either Raheem Sterling or Fabian Delph, a stronger case on Delph as the free kick subsequently lead to a game changing moment. Everton's Oumar Niasse was banned for 2 games after deceiving the referee vs Crystal Palace under new laws that began at the start of the season. The incidents are subsequently reviewed by an independent three-person panel which when reviewed, they decide whether the match official had been deceived by an act of simulation.

Mike Dean continued his inconsistency when Manual Lanzini was completely clattered by Manchester City defender Eliaquim Mangala. Dean was visually telling the West Ham players that it was a coming together between two players, but in fact Mangala jumped into the back of Lanzini when the West Ham playmaker was accelerating on a counter attack.

There were a couple of cautions in the final quarter of the second half with Kevin De Bruyne hacking down Arthur Masuaku which was a relatively easy decision to make as well as in the final stages when Adrian, who was impressive throughout the game, came rushing out his 18 yard box and caught Gabriel Jesus.

Overall, I have a prolonged issue with Mike Dean and the way that he handles himself throughout the game. My advice to any up and coming referee to watch only a handful of referees: Howard Webb, Mark Clattenburg and Michael Oliver, these referees were and are at the top of their game and as a role models for future referees. Human error is inevitable, I make mistakes and I referee youth leagues in Kent, and you need thick skinned. I put my hand on my heart and say that you have to be personable as a referee, it's not about getting on with people, you're in a cordon of emotions with players, managers and fans, but you need to earn that respect.

On a number of occasions, Mike Dean has been so arrogant with his decision making, even when his decision is wrong and continues to act in the same way every game, it my way or no way. Game management is incredibly important to a referee, it's understanding the best position and almost preempting the play. Player management is, for me, one of the most important part of your artery. When I referee, I talk to the players, I explain why I have given that decision. When Mike Dean makes a decision, he shuns the players which shows a lack of respect in my opinion.

A note on West Ham, I was fearing the worst coming into the game and thought Man City would put six or seven past us after the diabolical performance against Everton on Wednesday. With Chelsea and Arsenal coming up in the next ten days, I hope that Moyes can continue to work on the defensive side and work on breaking on the counter attack.

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Don't give up on us, defender tells famous fan
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 4th December 2017
By: Staff Writer

Angelo Ogbonna has told celebrity supporter James Corden not to give up hope of West Ham avoiding relegation, after the latter insisted he'd had never felt as "hopeless" before a match. The defender scored his first Premier League goal for West Ham against league leaders Manchester City yesterday, which was good enough to send the Hammers into the break with a slender lead. However City recovered after the break and went on to win the game 2-1 - albeit with the assistance of a dreadful call from Mike Dean, who awarded a free kick that never was to the hosts in the lead-up to their equaliser. Posting on twitter ahead of the game, LA-based Corden insisted that "I don't remember the last time I felt this nervous or hopeless before a match."

But following West Ham's narrow defeat, Italian international Ogbonna replied to Corden in order to insist that he - and all supporters - weren't quite ready to give up the ghost.

"Don't lose your hope @JKCorden," he replied. "We have shown we can can play head-to-head vs the first one in the league. "We will go up through the standings. If you come back in town for the holidays, come see us at the Stadium. We Irons stick together through good times and bad times."

* Meanwhile, fellow centre half Declan Rice has thanked David Moyes for placing his faith in his for yesterday's clash at the Etihad. "I'm loving training under David Moyes and his coaches," he said following the game. "To get the start here, I never thought it would happen. Luckily, with the injuries, he's believed in me and he has put me in, and I was happy with my performance. "I'm only 18-years-old so to test yourself against the likes of Aguero, De Bruyne, Jesus and Silva, I'm only going to learn and get better from it. Today was a fantastic experience for me."

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Man City 2-1 West Ham (And Other Ramblings)
KUMB.com
Filed: Monday, 4th December 2017
By: HeadHammerShark


"So how could I ever refuse
I feel like I win when I lose"
- ABBA, "Waterloo"


Well then. How does one assess a match in which your team is at longer odds to win 1-0 than the opposition is to win 7-0? A game in which your team takes a half time lead and defends tenaciously, but ultimately loses late on and drops more precious points? An away fixture in which we have to measure our progress not through tangible rewards like points, but instead through more prosaic measurements such as how long it took to concede? Glorious defeats are still defeats after all, and lots of games like this litter the fixture lists of relegated teams. How can it be then, that I feel somewhat more positive about life than I did this morning? How can it feel like a win when we lost?

Can four people dressed like this really be wrong?


At the most base level, this is simply a result of us not caving and losing by the tennis scores that have been the customary outcome whenever we have gone up against bigger teams lately. In fairness, that hasn't tended to be the case away from home, where there is less onus on us to come out and attack and as such we can keep a better defensive shape. For fifty minutes here, we performed a very impressive impersonation of a top flight football team as we kept Man City at arms length and forced them into ambitious shooting from long distance. In fact, I haven't seen so many shots fly over a bar in such quick succession since I last made the mistake of going for a drink with my Polish mate, Pete.

But putting aside all of that, I think what was really the most encouraging part of all this was that there seemed to be clear evidence of a plan and a commitment to sticking to it by the players. Ask yourself, when did you last see that? Even the glorious high of that cup win at Spurs seemed to be driven by some kind of magic pixie dust that settled on a couple of players and took the crowd with them and just blitzed us through. And while we might not like to admit it, that can happen in knockout games when opposition players get distracted and start to focus on the weekend and teams can take risks they might not otherwise take. But here, we did it on a day when it really mattered. Whisper it, perhaps, but we looked a little like one of those old David Moyes sides.

***

"We all disagree, I think we should disagree, yeah
Is this it?"
- The Strokes, "Is This It"


But how excited can we really be about "it" when we lost the game? After all, eight minutes from a point might as well be eighty for all the impact it had on the league table. In fact, as a result of this weekend we are now below Crystal Palace in the league table despite the fact that they played the first month of the season using their ballboys as a back four.

My take is that we at last displayed some level of discipline in our defensive duties and, crucially, the team were prepared to trust the system and each other to carry it through. It wasn't pretty or terribly ambitious, but when your opposition literally have a billion more pounds than you to spend on their team then I don't really feel like that should be a factor. City players and Pep Guardiola can make all the snide asides they want about time wasting and parking the bus but when we are but a month removed from the nation state of Abu Dhabi demanding that Brighton and Bournemouth give them a larger share of the Premier League television money they can, quite frankly, fuck right off. And when they get there they can fuck off again, as the great Malcolm Tucker might say.

Parked the bus did we Fabian? Fuckety bye, son.

In fact, Pep, if you hope that more teams will attack you then why don't you give us David Silva and a wage cap? Until then, slip on your hipster Adidas sambas and your Northside t-shirt and piss off on your skateboard back to your cave of oil money bullion and stop telling teams with 5% of your resources how to play.

As it was, we went into this game in the middle of our customary winter injury crisis and emerged with yet another muscle injury as Cheikhou Kouyate limped off in the first half. All hail Gary Lewin! That withdrawal had a big impact as it pushed Antonio out wide where he was pressed into lots of defensive work, which is usually a prelude to something disastrous like a rip in the space time continuum or a new Robbie Williams album.

Oddly, Man City looked nothing like the glorious attacking force that we are used to seeing as they huffed and puffed their way through the first half, with lots of possession and territory but very little by way of clear cut chances. Indeed, the best chances of the half came when Antonio got free at a corner and was unable to guide a flick on into the roof of the net and Manuel Lanzini pounced on a loose ball to fire at Ederson. With just a minute to go, however, Lanzini and Aaron Cresswell worked a short corner to allow the latter a better angle with which to hit the first man. Instead, he surprised us all by finding an unmarked Angelo Ogbonna who thumped home an opener that might not exactly have been deserved but did not flatter us.

I realise that not everybody puts much faith in Expected Goals, but this map from Michael Caley pretty much adheres to my view of that first half and highlights the excellent defensive performance. There seems to have been some view of it as us playing a three at the back system, with Cresswell as a centre back and Antonio as the lone striker. I didn't see it quite that way, as I thought it was a traditional flat back four with the full backs tucked in very tight and the wide players instructed to get back and provide cover at every opportunity. Arthur Masuaku did this pretty well and also managed his customary thing whereby he made several long weaving runs upfield, going past three or four players, and then following them up with periods of play where he looked like he was in a Testimonial.

Unfortunately, we couldn't keep that level of solidity and eventually we were simply overrun by a team who possess brilliant attacking players at every turn. The winner came just eight minutes from time and was wonderful, as Kevin de Bruyne picked out David Silva at the back post with a ludicrously pinpoint cross, and the Spaniard athletically volleyed it home. Scant reward for all that effort, but evidence enough that the gulf in class was pretty wide.

The equaliser was truly the goal that sank us, as the longer we went without conceding after half time, the more we had to cling to. It came from a free kick awarded for a Fabian Delph dive (Delph, the last bastion of footballing morality) meaning it was a passage of broken play when there are players in the box who aren't normally there. And so it was that Jesus made a run and crossed for Nicolas Otamendi, of all people, to stab it home. Until that point, Adrian had looked fairly unbeatable in a way that Joe Hart has never yet done in claret and blue.

We still had a couple of half chances to snatch something when Marko Arnautovic broke late in the half but his first cross was too high for Antonio and his second was turned just past the post by Diafra Sakho. By such fine margins can relegation seasons hang.

***

"We're movin' up, we're movin' up
It's been a lot to change, but you
Will always get what you want"
- Two Door Cinema Club, "Something Good Can Work"


What really needs to happen now is that these brief elevations in performance levels actually need to start producing something. It's tough on David Moyes, who has not had a preseason and has inherited a team that look knackered, unfit and lacking in confidence, but there is no time for sentiment. Turning this around is a huge job, and these are spirited baby steps, but sadly, getting the team to perform to a level just below that of the opposition is still a recipe for going down. It is a sobering thought that for all of these small, incremental gains, we are currently in a worse position than we were under Avram Grant, Patron Saint of the Incompetent, at the same time in 2010/11.

The half time TV analysis of this game was interesting, as Jamie Carragher suggested that West Ham were deliberately not advancing from their defensive shape to engage City's attackers. What this ensured was that we left no space behind our defenders and instead kept them in front of us. This led to lots of pointless passing and those long range shots that Adrian was happy to wave into the stratosphere.

Now, I'm sure that Slaven Bilic tried to instil those sorts of plans in his players too, but to a layman like me it never looked like they stuck. Yet here was a defensive plan frustrating the worlds best coach and forcing him to switch to a 4-2-4 system that eventually overwhelmed us. While it may not have worked today, what games like this can do is give players confidence in their management staff that they have some workable ideas that will serve them better against lesser opposition in the future. Very few teams have a David Silva to turn to, after all.

This won't happen every week, Declan


I also have to hold my hands up and acknowledge that Declan Rice was more than worth his starting place. I have generally not joined in the clamour for young, inexperienced players to be thrown into the team, but the Irishman was outstanding here and stood firm against world class opponents. Certainly, Sergio Aguero seems to have gone off the boil - not the first man to pay the price for a long weekend in Amsterdam - but Rice was assured in his defensive work, even allowing for an early booking, and he deserves an extended run, if only because both Reid and Collins are so injury prone that the disruption caused by their frequent absences is an increasing problem.

The booking for Rice was interesting as referee Mike Dean refused to apply the same rigidity to his decisions for City defenders. Both Otamendi and Mangala should have been booked for first half fouls, which would have at least forced them to be a little more timid in their second half tackling. As they weren't, City just kept fouling us with impunity on the rare occasions we forayed forwarded. It's a little trick that served Ranieri's Leicester well in the season they won the league, and is an oft underplayed element of Premier League defending these days.

However, where we really lost out in the second half was in the way we dropped deeper and deeper, inviting them on to us with no real way out. Giving Antonio defensive responsibility is fraught with danger, especially when he is such a strong outlet at the other end. There is a dream I have where he and Sakho terrorise less progressive teams with their pace and power. However, even Arnautovic was sucked back into defensive roles and what that meant was we could never relieve pressure by advancing further up the pitch in possession. Lots of aimless balls went into the corners and by the end we were basically putting on a touring version of Zulu.

***

"Let me go on,
Big hands I know you're the one"
- Violent Femmes, "Blister In The Sun"


One thing that was also different this week was that we had Adrian in goal. David Sullivan's £4m summer vanity project, known to his mum as Joe Hart and "Good try, Joe" to his defenders, was ineligible as he is technically still a Man City player, although Pep seems to have more time for Nathan Redmond than he does for Hart these days.

The Spaniard did nothing to deserve being dropped in the first place, and was excellent here again. Neither goal was his fault and he pulled off a number of excellent diving stops to keep us at parity. He has no weakness to his left, unlike Hart, and seems to inspire a certain level of confidence in the team that isn't there when the "England No.1" is between the sticks. It's a bit harsh to blame Hart as the defensive set up in front of him this season has been mostly imaginary, but it was still a vainglorious signing by Sullivan in an attempt to get some big names into his side to deflect criticism from his prior failures.

The folly of that policy was laid bare here, as it was tempting to imagine how that £4m of wages could have been better utilised as we got to seventy minutes and an exhausted Antonio desperately needed replacing and we had only untried youth players available.

There is a rumour doing the rounds that Hart has a clause in his deal that demands he is played when he is available, and if so, he'll return on Saturday against Chelsea. I don't blame him for that, by the way, as this is a World Cup year and he couldn't run the risk of losing his England place due to not playing. However, for us to agree to that is ludicrous. He was never anything more than a minimal upgrade over Adrian, at best, and by not playing the Spaniard we have cost him his own chance of regaining his position as 3rd choice Spanish keeper. Given that, he will be off at the earliest available opportunity, and who can blame him. What a nonsense.

This is the kind of crap that so frustrates me about the way the club operate off the field. A completely unnecessary signing that wasted valuable funds in a transfer window where Sullivan presumably knew he was going to be significantly reducing our net spend. I'm sure it's tedious for you all to hear me vent about this, but we are teetering very close to a catastrophic situation for the club and the hubris of Sullivan in believing he is suited to overseeing the situation is a huge factor in that. Take the injury to Kouyate - the continual loss of first team players to muscle damage should be a huge warning sign to a thoroughly modern club. A qualified Director of Football would be investigating that and demanding an upgrade to performance in that area. Sadly, at West Ham, unless a question can be resolved with a phone call to an agent, it simply doesn't get asked.

Interestingly, a reader asked me on Twitter during the week what were my criteria for a Director of Football and I struggled to answer because of the character restriction. This in itself is telling, because it should be a huge job that encompasses broad and wide ranging responsibilities across the club, with responsibility for lots of different staff members.

I would start by saying that the departments of recruitment, scouting, analytics, sports science, medical, player development (Academy) and player welfare should all report to that position. It's a role that requires an ability to manage across a wide area and has a pseudo CEO look because delegation and flexibility seem key to me. Rather than hiring an ex manager who is looking for a short cut back to the dugout, the person would probably be someone with a business background and experience in sport, without any requirement to have played the game at a high level. Perhaps most importantly of all would be the requirement that this person shape the philosophy for the entire organisation. It's hard to overstate how demoralising it can be to work somewhere with no direction and no obvious plan for the future. Employees like certainty and structure - even those at football clubs.

What I wouldn't suggest is a club chairman with five relegations to his name, who never leaves his house or speaks to junior staff and holes himself up in his office ringing agents until 4am trying to drive down loan fees for players that any reasonable analyst could tell him won't fit his side.

I'm sorry for continuing to bang this particular drum, but in this odd time we live in where the club appear to be canvassing opinion from every possible corner, the single best thing West Ham fans could do right now would be to turn their attention away from the lack of places to rest their pints at half time on the concourses and demand some proper corporate governance and leadership from those who own the club.

***

"Don't give me love or, no, none of that stuff
Cos, it's yer money I'm after, baby"
- The Wonder Stuff, "Give, Give, Give Me More, More, More"

So as we leave today behind and look forward, we return home for back to back games with Chelsea and Arsenal. The former seem a bit more mortal this year, and probably represent our best hope of getting something even though Eden Hazard's return to form seems a bit terrifying.

But perhaps the most interesting part of our return back to the stadium is the report that was issued by the Mayor's office last week into the costs around the conversion of the Olympic Stadium to its current state. Jon Lines writes a good review of the situation at Brace The Hammer which fills in a lot of blanks you may have. I've added a few bits here, but where I get anything wrong please let me know. It's a complex area and I have really only skim read the report. But a lack of expertise certainly didn't stop any of the people involved in the deal so I'm not worrying either.

Cheers lads


The report, by Moore Stephens, should be read through the prism of the political situation in London at present. The games were won under the Labour Mayor, Ken Livingston who made the decision - along with Tory Seb Coe - that the stadium would maintain an athletics track after the games and that no concessions would be made to the desire of Premier League teams to be involved in the process. This fateful decision would end up costing the taxpayer hundreds of millions, as it would become evident in later years that a stadium with no anchor tenant would be the white elephant the British bid had promised not to leave behind.

Ironically, IOC President Jacques Rogge would later state that there was no firm requirement for an athletics track to be retained as part of the stadium design, confirming that at least in some part, this was an ideological decision on behalf of former Olympic champion, Coe.

Thereafter, the political landscape changed as Boris Johnson was elected Mayor, meaning that the entire world could watch our opening ceremony and say "My God, he's their Mayor?". Johnson would reopen the stadium issue once again by seeking an anchor tenant to provide a greater legacy than a 25,000 seater athletics stadium that would likely rust in the London rain. In 2011, he selected West Ham as that tenant with an agreement that we would effectively take over running of the stadium, with responsibility for the costs of conversion and maintenance in exchange for retaining all profits associated with the deal.

This proposal, as revealed in the report, was markedly different to the version we have now and essentially involved West Ham agreeing to play in the Olympic Stadium as was, athletics track and all, with a canvas roof above. I don't know either.

However, fellow bidders Spurs and Leyton Orient and an anonymous complainant would appeal this decision, quoting EU State Aid rules (oh, the irony). Amid a feverish political climate, Johnson shelved that idea in between insulting some foreigners, and re ran the bid process with the central plank being that the Government would retain full ownership of the stadium and run the business profitably for the taxpayer. This would mean that a tenant such as West Ham would gain access to the ground for a small number of days each year, with the rest of the time being taken up with other profitable events to make money for the taxpayer.

In reality those appeals from Spurs and Leyton Orient saved West Ham hugely, as the reality of playing in the stadium with next to no money spent on conversion would have been horrendous. What they also did was cost the taxpayer an incredible amount as those costs would later spiral wildly, as West Ham's demands increased substantially now that we weren't paying for it. The decision to rerun the bid process would generate huge costs for the taxpayer - a point that the current Labour Mayor, Sadiq Khan, was looking to highlight with the publication of this report.

Even more ironic was that Spurs never had any particular desire to move to Stratford, but instead merely wanted to use it as a stalking horse to get the Mayor to commit to providing funding for their own stadium redevelopment in Haringey. That was successful as they are now receiving tens of millions of public money to assist with their project - you'll remember that irony I mentioned earlier - and had the added effect of convincing Karren Brady to commit to keeping the athletics track as part of West Ham's bid.

My own feeling is that West Ham were, not unreasonably, concerned that if the Spurs bid were to be chosen and if they were to move into Stratford it could signal the end of our dominance of the East London and Essex catchment area. As such, they sought to differentiate themselves by committing to the track, even though grounds that have done this are usually as atmospheric as morgues. What does become clear reading the report is that the fan experience is not central to anything that has been done with the stadium.

Fast forward to 2017, and what the report is showing is that the deal West Ham negotiated is so ludicrously one sided that the best projected year for E20 - the company running the stadium for the Greater London Authority - is a ten million pound loss. Much of this is due to the fact that West Ham's annual rent is £2.5m, when the cost of running the ground is closer to £11m. Additionally, the famous retractable seating has proven to be a disaster, with the company contracted to deliver it going bust and the replacement system required at short notice for the Rugby World Cup an expensive exercise. West Ham fans will also realise that it doesn't retract. Johnson's fingerprints are all over that process too.

The summary of the report is essentially that the current situation is not tenable, with so much public money being used to prop up a poorly negotiated, one sided deal that hurts the taxpayer. The problem with that is there aren't any terribly good options available. Sadiq Khan has announced that his office will take control of the stadium from E20 which I suspect will mean a squeeze on any of the services provided by the landlord. Expect to see stewards, safety officers, security officers and any other staff reduced as much as legally possible by the Mayor. Great news for fans.

In Jon's summary article above he suggests that West Ham will inevitably end up paying more due to Khan's desire to rescue the situation. I disagree with this, largely because there isn't anything Khan can do to renegotiate the deal unless he offers up something in return. That might be a greater slice of naming rights or a reduction in the amount due to the Treasury in the event they sell the club. Therefore, Khan can talk about a new deal but in all likelihood nothing much will change. There may be an attempt to leave the stadium in athletics mode after the next event, but presumably that will be met with a strong legal challenge from West Ham on the grounds that they will have sold season tickets to fans in those seats.

Given all of that, and there is a whole load more to this which I'd encourage you to read about on this excellent thread on the KUMB Forum, I can only really see a long term solution whereby we take over the stadium. Let's face it - the Mayor could save millions for the taxpayer now simply by giving Sullivan and Gold the keys. Of course this won't happen because the political nature of the situation prevents it, but it does it mean there is going to be a public focus on the costs of the London Stadium. Generally, such PFI arrangements can be loss making forever, but now that Khan has made it so public I do wonder if something will happen further up the line.

There is then a question as to exactly why Sullivan and Gold would ever bother to take on the ownership of a ground when they could stay as they are and reap all of the same benefits for just £2.5m a year. But while there are plenty who will think that this is a great deal for West Ham, it should be noted that I don't support a balance sheet, and what's good for our owners hasn't generally translated into good things for the team, and furthermore West Ham fans are taxpayers too, and have every right to be as outraged as anyone else about this appalling waste of public funds.

Should the owners buy or acquire the ground, I don't see them investing in making it the arena for football that we want to be with proper retractable seating and (somehow) a steeper rake for the stands. But, if they were to own it, then it would make the purchase of West Ham a far more attractive proposition for external investors. It's a long way to go from where we are now, but in the longer term I can't really see that it's palatable to the public purse - and those Newham resident West Ham fans who saw their council chuck £40m into the pot - to continue setting fire to ten million quid a year. If they were going to do that they could have just bought us Robert Snodgrass last January and called it quits. Nothing will happen quickly, but something will happen there. Keep an eye on it.

Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, nor should be attributed to, KUMB.com.

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David Moyes should take heart from defeat at Man City - his West Ham side showed they are up for the fight
The Scot saw his side take an unexpected lead at the Etihad, but two second-half strikes completed the comeback for the Blues
The Mirror
David Anderson
ByDavid Anderson
Football And Boxing Correspondent
21:20, 3 DEC 2017


At the final whistle, he exchanged a quick handshake with Pep Guardiola before walking onto the pitch to applaud the away fans. Then after a brief word with Brian Kidd and a hug from his old Everton pal Mikel Arteta, David Moyes disappeared down the tunnel to reflect on what might have been. However Moyes should not have been too despondent. Yes, the stats will show he has managed just one draw from his four games in charge and that West Ham remain deep in relegation trouble in 19th place - three points below the safety line. But his side deserved something for the way they successfully frustrated Manchester City's all-star attack and might have nicked a result if Diafra Sakho had shown more composure in front of goal in added time.

West Ham delivered the improvement Moyes demanded after the midweek debacle at Everton and they showed the fight needed to win a relegation scrap.
Moyes saw enough to believe he can haul West Ham out of trouble well before May. "I've always thought that we will get away and I don't think we will be in trouble," said the former Manchester United and Sunderland boss. "I think we have a good team, we have good players and today's performance gives us hope that it can be done. "We gave ourselves a chance against one of the top teams and we have got a lot of top teams coming up in the next few weeks."
Moyes suffocated City with his 5-4-1 formation and made no apologies for defending in such depth after Guardiola moaned about their lack of ambition."I want our football to be attacking, but we were playing against a team where you hardly get the ball," he said. "I'm here to try and get a result for West Ham, not to make Man City look good."

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West Ham United boss David Moyes risks losing Diafra Sakho in the January transfer window
Sun 3 Dec
HITC
John Verrall
@JohnVerrall

West Ham United boss David Moyes has not started Diafra Sakho since taking charge at the London Stadium. David Moyes is running the risk of losing Diafra Sakho, by not starting him for West Ham United.

Sakho has become frustrated with a lack of opportunities at West Ham, and even a managerial change does not seem to have helped nudge the Senegalese striker up the pecking order. Sakho was only named as a substitute yesterday, as West Ham took on Manchester City, with a returning Michail Antonio favoured to start. Antonio is just coming back from injury, and isn't even a natural striker, so for Sakho that decision must have been particularly hard to take.

West Ham United's Senegalese striker Diafra Sakho (2nd L) celebrates with teammates after scoring the only goal of the English Premier League football match between West Ham United and... And Sakho's comments from last month, about his own future, prove that Moyes may be taking a huge risk over losing the forward in January. "It's not easy to show what I can do, or prove to the people what I can do on the pitch, when I only play for 10 minutes," Sakho said to the Daily Star. "But I don't need to knock on the manager's door – I showed what I can do, I have to force my way into the team. "I was very close to leaving, but now I am here and I am enjoying the little time I've had on the pitch to prove myself, and after the international break we will see if I can get more. "In my head I just want to enjoy being part of this team and we will see what happens in January."

Sakho actually was introduced after 40 minutes during West Ham's match against Manchester City, but that was only due to injury striking.
And Sakho's lack of game time since Moyes took charge is unlikely to convince the striker that sticking around at the London Stadium is his best option, with the transfer window set to re-open next month.

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