Early goals cost Hammers again
WHUFC.com
Early goals and defensive lapses cost West Ham United dear again as Slaven
Bilic's side were edged out 3-2 by Leicester City.
The Hammers dominated for long stretches at London Stadium and, on the
balance of play, should have won comfortably. Instead, conceding twice
within the opening seven minutes ultimately gave them too much to do to
rescue a point.
As West Ham's winless run stretched to five, resurgent champions Leicester
celebrated their maiden away win of the season in east London, having opened
the scoring on their travels for the first time in 14 attempts.
Riyad Mahrez was the scorer, in slightly fortuitous circumstances, as his
right-wing cross eluded the heads of Jamie Vardy and Shinji Okazaki before
bouncing into the far corner.
Within two minutes it was 2-0 Leicester as West Ham's marking completely
evaporated from a short free-kick, enabling Mahrez to pick out the unmarked
Robert Huth, who headed past Darren Randolph.
West Ham were shellshocked and their afternoon took another turn for the
worse when captain Winston Reid was forced off with a right leg injury, with
Robert Snodgrass coming on in his place.
Minutes later, the Hammers had a lifeline when Michail Antonio was brought
down 25 yards from goal and Manuel Lanzini stepped up to curl an
inch-perfect free-kick over the wall and under Kasper Schmeichel's
crossbar.
Just when you thought Leicester were rocking, another defensive error handed
them a third goal. Andy Carroll missed his header from a corner, the ball
hit Wilfred Ndidi and then Vardy, who then lashed high into the net from
close range.
After missing a succession of half-chances, the Hammers went in 3-1 down at
half-time, with a mountain to climb after the break.
The comeback looked to be on when Snodgrass's corner was headed into the
six-yard box for Ayew, whose own header was too strong for Schmeichel. Game
on.
West Ham laid siege to the Foxes goal in the closing 20 minutes, but somehow
failed to score an equaliser, while Pedro Obiang became the second home
player to be forced off with a leg injury.
First, Carroll's goalbound header was clawed away by Schmeichel from Ayew'
s cross, before the Ghana star somehow shot too high after being played in
by Antonio.
The chances kept on coming as Cheikhou Kouyate saw his low shot kept out by
a goalline clearance from Danny Drinkwater. Then, in added time, Schmeichel
made a stupendous stop from Carroll after the ball dropped to him from
Snodgrass's deflected free-kick.
There was time for Randolph to make his own fine stop to deny substitute
Islam Slimani, but it was the earlier errors which leave everyone in Claret
and Blue wondering how they managed to go home with nothing.
West Ham United: Randolph, Byram, Fonte, Reid (c) (Snodgrass 18), Cresswell
(Masuaku 73), Obiang (Fernandes 67), Kouyate, Ayew, Lanzini, Antonio,
Carroll
Subs not used: Adrian, Nordtveit, Collins, Feghouli
Goals: Lanzini 20, Ayew 63
Leicester City: Schmeichel (c), Simpson, Huth, Benalouane, Fuchs, Mahrez
(Chilwell 86), Ndidi, Drinkwater, Albrighton, Okazaki (Musa 76), Vardy
(Slimani 76)
Subs not used: Zieler, King, Amartey, Gray
Goals: Mahrez 5, Huth 7, Vardy 38
Booked: Drinkwater
Attendance; 56,979
Referee: Roger East
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U18s earn crucial win at Reading
WHUFC.com
Anthony Scully scored a late winner as West Ham United's U18s earned a vital
three points away at Reading in Merit Group A.
The Hammers were beaten 4-0 at home to Chelsea last week and were looking to
bounce back from that disappointment - Scully's second goal of the season
proved the difference at the Reading Training Ground on Saturday.
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Slav rues Jekyll and Hyde display
WHUFC.com
Slaven Bilic laments more early defensive lapses in 3-2 defeat by Leicester
City
Hammers conceded from two set pieces and a soft cross from Riyad Mahrez
Second-half fightback comes close to securing a share of the points at
London Stadium
Slaven Bilic was left to reflect on another Jekyll and Hyde performance from
West Ham United in Saturday's 3-2 Premier League defeat by Leicester City.
The Hammers conceded two soft goals within the opening seven minutes, got
back into the game through Manuel Lanzini's inch-perfect free-kick, only
for another defensive lapse to send them into half-time 3-1 down.
Andre Ayew halved the deficit with half-an-hour remaining, but a combination
of profligate finishing and inspired goalkeeping from Kasper Schmeichel made
for another frustrating afternoon at London Stadium.
"It is very frustrating for us to lose the game," said Bilic, whose side
fell behind to Riyad Mahrez's cross and a set piece header from Robert
Huth, before Jamie Vardy added a third from a corner. "We didn't start
well and what was really disappointing was the way we conceded three goals,
including two very quickly.
"Then we came back and got the goal and had a good spell, but again they
scored and got their third goal. They basically scored their first goal
from a cross and two goals from set pieces. We knew they were good in them,
but we had to defend them better.
"Then, in the second half, to be fair it was all us. We really deserved
something from this game. We created enough chances and we were pressing
them really well, so I told the guys that in this game you can't afford to
be 3-1 down and turn the game around.
"They showed quality and they showed character and they created more than
enough chances to get a point, but in the second half, it didn't want to go
in, to be fair."
The final 20 minutes were almost completely one-sided, with West Ham
throwing everything at the Leicester goal in search of a leveller.
Carroll's goalbound header was clawed away by Schmeichel from Ayew's
cross, before the Ghana star shot over the crossbar after being played in by
Antonio.
The chances kept on flowing as Cheikhou Kouyate saw his low shot kept out by
a goalline clearance from Danny Drinkwater. Then, in added time, Schmeichel
made a stupendous stop from Carroll after the ball dropped to him from
Snodgrass's deflected free-kick.
"It was both poor finishing and good goalkeeping, because we expected to
score from those positions, and we have to give huge credit to Schmeichel,
especially for his last save, because it was a fantastic save," observed
the West Ham manager.
"We showed both sides to our game. The first half, we showed our defending
from set pieces, but the second half gives us hope with the performance
because we were really good with and without the ball. The only thing that
was lacking were goals."
To add injuries to insult, Bilic also saw Winston Reid and Pedro Obiang
forced off with leg injuries, while the manager revealed that a hamstring
problem may force Antonio to withdraw from England duty.
"With Winston Reid, it doesn't look good, but we have to assess him," he
said. "Also Michail unfortunately he probably won't be able to go to the
England squad. It looks like that now. He felt a hamstring and it got worse.
"Pedro twisted his ankle in a challenge but it's too early to say
anything. We have to assess him over the next couple of days. We have the
international break now and hopefully they're going to be fit soon."
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Ayew - The crowd helped us push
WHUFC.com
Andre Ayew scored his fourth goal of the season - and first at London
Stadium - in Saturday's 3-2 defeat to Leicester City
Ghana international's 63rd minute header reduced deficit to a single goal,
but the leveller wouldn't come
Ayew had praise for backing given by London Stadium crowd
Andre Ayew felt the support of the London Stadium crowd on Saturday, but was
disappointed not to reward them with a positive result against Leicester
City.
First half goals from Riyad Mahrez, Robert Huth and Jamie Vardy left the
Hammers up against it, but Ayew's 63rd minute header - his third strike in
the last four games - reduced the deficit to 3-2 and gave this side real
hope.
The Hammers continued to knock at the door, but missed opportunities by Ayew
and strike partner Andy Carroll kept the Foxes in front to the end.
Aye thought his side had done enough to get something from the game and was
impressed by the atmosphere created as his team fought their way back unto
the contest.
He explained: "We are very, very disappointed. I think we didn't get into
the game when we had to and Leicester scored three goals out of nothing
really.
"Two set pieces and once cross have led to the three goals, but we had
chances to get back into the game and we didn't. We need to go back, learn
from our mistakes and be better for our next game away at Hull.
"There have been games where we have conceded goals in the first ten or 15
minutes and we need to work on that and change it, because conceding early
changes the whole game.
"We had positive things, but when you don't win you see them. The fans were
behind us the whole game and helped us to push and try to get back into it.
"We had chances and we need to work on our play in the two boxes,
offensively and defensively, and hopefully we can start winning games."
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Westley - We gave so much
WHUFC.com
West Ham United U23s were beaten 3-2 in an entertaining Premier League Cup
tie against Newcastle United
It was the Hammers' second game at St. James' Park in the space of six
days
Westley was left proud of his side's battling performance and said his
squad gave so much in the north east
Terry Westley praised the desire of his U23 squad after they came so close
to reaching the last-eight of the Premier League Cup at St. James' Park on
Saturday.
The Premier League 2 squad twice went in front against Newcastle United in
the second match against the Magpies in the space of six days, but the hosts
eventually took a 3-2 lead and held on to go through to the next round.
Ashley Fletcher had put the Hammers in front from the penalty spot and
Declan Rice thought he had won the tie with a header seven minutes from
time, but Newcastle goals scored by Luke Charman and two by Sammy Ameobi
crushed the visitors' hopes.
The U23s lifted the trophy last season, and though boss Westley desperately
wanted to defend the title this campaign, he was proud of his team's
performance.
"The players are gutted in the dressing room, because they've given so
much," he said. "It's disappointing. We're the cup holders and we wanted
to have a real go at it again, and I think you can see that from the manner
in which the players played and the effort we put in.
"It was a terrific game. The way we played first half, we were very good
and deservedly went in front. Maybe we should have stretched the lead
further.
"They kept digging in, and you knew it would be hard to stay in front.
Coming up here on Monday, getting back at 4am and then coming back up on
Friday made it more difficult for us.
"It was never going to be easy and I think in the end we ran out of steam
and it started to affect our decision making.
"It was a great winner, and maybe that was the difference; the way they
finished. That tiredness in the end was probably the difference. In normal
time, [Marcus ]Browne hit the post and that would have seen us through. We
were always in it."
Even behind in extra time, the Hammers thought they had dragged the game to
a penalty shootout when Tunji Akinola found the back of the net from a
Browne corner.
However the referee ruled to award the hosts a free-kick, a decision that
frustrated Westley.
"I thought it was a goal. I think the ref did well but on the real bid
decision, he hasn't got it right. If anything it was a foul on our player.
Over a season, you get some of those though, so you have to take that.
"You have to play with that energy and desire and we did that. Marcus
Browne was outstanding, Declan Rice was as the captain, [Dan] Kempy first
half, they couldn't get near him.
"We caused them so many problems but really ran out of gas and steam to see
the game through.
"I just said to the lads, we've lost but we have two really important
league games coming up. We want to try and finish in the top five and we
have two huge games left."
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Michail Antonio: West Ham winger set to miss England duty with injury
BBC.co.uk
West Ham winger Michail Antonio is likely to be withdrawn from the England
squad because of a hamstring injury, says Hammers manager Slaven Bilic.
The 26-year-old reported the injury after Saturday's 3-2 Premier League
defeat by Leicester City, having played the full 90 minutes at London
Stadium.
England face Germany in a friendly on 22 March before hosting Lithuania in a
World Cup qualifier on 26 March.
"It looks like Michail won't be able to go with the England squad," said
Bilic.
"He felt something. He played the whole game but the medical team have told
me now. He didn't limp off, though, so we will see."
Antonio was set to make his international debut this month, and his absence
would further weaken the attacking options of England boss Gareth Southgate.
Forwards Harry Kane, Daniel Sturridge, Danny Welbeck and Wayne Rooney are
all out through injury, while Theo Walcott was left out of the squad.
In addition to Antonio, West Ham lost centre-back Winston Reid to a leg
injury, while midfielder Pedro Obiang was taken off on a stretcher after
rolling his ankle.
On the injuries to Antonio and Reid, Bilic said: "Hopefully, they will be
fit after the international break."
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WEST HAM 2-3 LEICESTER CITY - MATCH REPORT
BY BRIAN KNOX ON 18 MARCH 2017 AT 6:18PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Match Report by @WestHamAmerican
Leicester City continued it's mastery over the Slaven Bilic helmed West Ham
United first team with a 2-3 victory over the Hammers in the London Stadium.
For the defending league champions, it was their first away victory in the
Premier League this season. For West Ham, it was another unexplained
defeat, as they continue to look for answers in the back four. With the
victory the Foxes conclude a remarkable week as they clinched their second
leg victory in the round of 16 over Sevilla.
For any West Ham supporters hoping that Leicester would have a slow start
due to their European heroics early in the week, they were disappointed.
Barely five minutes in and Jamie Vardy took the ball from Pedro Obiang and
served up Riyad Mahrez, who found the far corner away from Darren Randolph.
Not two minutes later and Mahrez was at it again. He received a free kick
and crossed to an open Robert Huth, who made it 0-2 before many patrons were
in their seats.
The attitude around the ground sunk even further when today's captain,
Winston Reid, went down with injury forcing Bilic to use a substitution only
18 minutes in. He brought on Robert Snodgrass, hoping to spur more
opportunities.
West Ham's first great opportunity took place only two minutes later when
Manuel Lanzini's free kick from 25 yards out found the top-left corner of
the goal. With the hosts finally getting on the score sheet, the atmosphere
at the London Stadium improved. Both sides had their first half
opportunities but it was Leicester who had the better first half finish as
Jamie Vardy scored from three yards out on a corner that West Ham was unable
to clear. Vardy's strike from short range was in heavy traffic but
Randolph had little chance to block.
Both goalkeepers had to employ some heroics to finish the half, but both
teams retired from the pitch with a 1-3 score sheet. Neither side made
changes during the break and the second half featured a desperate West Ham
trying to draw even.
Early in the half, a West Ham corner was headed by Andy Carroll to Andre
Ayew, whose own header found its way in. With a 2-3 score, the London
Stadium came to life, as did the home side. The remaining 30 minutes
predominately featured West Ham taking their shots, but Leicester's Casper
Schmeichel showed why his is one of the best goal keepers in the world with
his saves and leadership during the close of the match.
A 77th minute cross from Ayew to Andy Carroll was saved by the Danish goal
keeper. Goal Line technology confirmed it was close, but not a goal. Two
minutes later Ayew had an opportunity from ten yards out but his shot was
entirely too high. Moments later a Snodgrass corner found its way to Andy
Carroll, whose immediate shot was saved by Schmeichel. Even during the six
minutes of added time, Carroll had an open shot which Schmeichel batted
away.
For all the efforts and almost twice the attempts as Leicester, West Ham as
unable to equalise and walked off the pitch winless since early February.
Hopefully a visit to Hull can give the Hammers a sorely needed three points,
but without some smart moves during the transfer window, it seems it will be
a forgettable finish to the season for the Claret fans.
West Ham: Randolph, Byram, Fonte, Reid, Cresswell, Kouyate, Obiang, Ayew,
Lanzini, Antonio, Carroll.
Subs: Adrian, Collins, Fernandes (66′), Masuaku (73′), Snodgrass (18′),
Feghouli, Nordtveit,
Leicester: Schmeichel, Simpson, Huth, Benalouane, Fuchs, Mahrez, Ndidi,
Drinkwater, Albrighton, Okazaki, Vardy.
Subs: Zieler, Chilwell (84′), Musa (75′), King, Amartey, Slimani (75′),
Gray
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REF ANALYSIS - ROGER EAST
BY BRIAN KNOX ON 18 MARCH 2017 AT 6:49PM
TheWestHamWay.co.uk
Written by @SamRoyden
After a very disappointing result at Bournemouth, we welcomed Premier League
Champions and Champions League quarter finalists Leicester City to the
London Stadium. Slaven Bilic made some encouraging changes to the starting
line up for this game. ExWhuEmployee confirmed on Thursday that Mark Noble
was out for this game meaning Sam Byram was recalled in the back 4, with
Kouyate moving into midfield alongside Obiang and Andre Ayew into midfield
after scoring two goals in two substitute appearances.
Roger East was the referee appointed for this game and this was East's
first Premier League fixture since 31st January. East has been absent from
Premier League duties this season, only officiating 6 Premier League
fixtures all season. East has been officiating in the Championship and
League One as well as taking up 4th official duties. I was interested to see
how he performed during the fixture as East is the least frequent Premier
League appointed referee this season.
I seem to be saying this a lot recently, but another disaster of a half for
West Ham however Roger East seemed to be in control throughout. Within 7
minutes, West Ham were two-nil down and the second goal came from a foul
from Winston Reid. Reid unfairly barged into Okazaki and that set up the set
piece which resulted in the corner that Robert Huth scored from. The
frustration grew for West Ham as Michail Antonio was bundled to the floor 25
yards outside the goal but the assistant referee flagged for an offside
offence.
Leciester's Danny Drinkwater was causing issues for West Ham and he always
has a poor challenge in his locker. Roger East was keen to speak to the
England international after an altercation with a West Ham player before a
West Ham throw. 30 second later, the Foxes midfielder fouled Michail Antonio
25 yards from goal, which looked like a poor challenge in my opinion. East
awarded the free-kick to West Ham but no further punishment was issued. In
my opinion, Drinkwater could have easily been issued a caution for his
challenge on Antonio. Manuel Lanzini subsequently scored from the free-kick
reducing the gap to 1-2.
Andy Carroll had a goal disallowed after Michail Antonio came back from an
offside position to become active in a good build up of play by West Ham.
Carroll was aware that play had stopped but continued to shoot on goal and
score. East and his assistant got this decision correct.
Nearing the end of the half, Roger East got caught in two minds whether to
caution Marc Albrighton after the Leicester player blocked West Ham from
taking a quick free-kick. It appeared that East got his yellow card out of
his pocket but then changed his mind. 9/10 times this is a yellow card and
in my opinion was a mistake by Roger East.
In a second half, where West Ham threw the kitchen sink at the flagging
Leicester, Roger East was consistent with his decisions.
East played very good advantage within minutes of each other which is
important to ensure the game is free flowing. Vardy was unfairly challenged
by makeshift centre half Kouyate and East played advantage but the ball went
off for a throw in. There was no advantage to be played so East correctly
brought play back for a free-kick. The other good piece of advantage was
when Lanzini was caught off the ball during a promising West Ham attack.
Danny Drinkwater eventually got his name in Roger East's notebook after
Kouyate pipped the midfielder to the ball, who was challenging for the ball
on the slide. Drinkwater looked like he was trying to pull out of the
challenge but when you slide into a challenge, you need to win the ball or
more than likely you're going to be cautioned.
It was encouraging to see that East was relatively consistent with his
decision making especially when Okazaki was penalised for barging Manuel
Lanzini to the floor. This was the exact type of challenge that Okazaki was
on the receiving end off in the first half by Winston Reid.
Overall, I thought that Roger East performed well for his first Premier
League appointment since January. He kept up with the game well and allowed
the game to flow were necessary. There were a couple of decisions that I
felt he got wrong, however in his view and opinion he thought differently.
Another hugely irritating game of football from West Ham. To concede two
goals in seven minutes at home to a team that are fighting relegation and
played Champions League football midweek is embarrassing. There has to be
questions raised regarding our defence as too many goals have been conceded
early on against lesser teams. (Watford - 3 minutes, Leicester - 5 minutes,
West Brom - 6 minutes). With both Slaven Bilic and Julian Dick former
defenders, it's concerning the amount of goals that we've conceded this
season. It clearly wasn't our day when two of our strikers missed
opportunities 10 yards outside of goal. Andre Ayew and Andy Carroll should
have done better.
With the international break coming at a good time, especially with injuries
for Reid and Obiang, we go to Hull City on the 1st April which is a must win
against a relegation candidate.
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http://vyperz.blogspot.com
Sunday, March 19
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