Insult to Hammers fans: Is West Ham’s history really pure fantasy?
Yet another pundit has joined the “be careful what you wish for” brigade, but this time it’s former Hammers coach and player Stuart Pearce.
Let’s be honest here, pundits are lining up to call West Ham fans deluded for daring to wish for a bit of ambition and entertainment. However, I didn’t expect to hear it from Pearce, especially not as part of a tag-team mocking spree alongside Sam Allardyce.
“You’re not wrong Stu”: A smug Allardyce looks on as Pearce dismisses The West Ham Way as fantasy. A massive insult to Hammers fans.
The unfortunate exchange was broadcast on a show called ‘No Tippy Tappy Football with Sam Allardyce,’ which is available on Spotify.
During the podcast, host Natalie Pike asked Pearce, “Why are people still questioning David Moyes, do you think?”. It’s clear that when Pike says ‘people’, she means West Ham fans, and so does Pearce in his reply.
The former Moyes assistant said, “Some people have a hang-up about the style of football. I think it stems from the 1970s and days of Bobby Moore and Trevor Brooking. They’re looking at the academy of football sign on the door with rose-tinted glasses.”
“I think, if they’re honest, it’s not a time that ever really existed.”
Now, I’ll save my outrage for another time, but to suggest that the innovative Ron Greenwood and his successor John Lyall did not produce a footballing identity at West Ham is a massive insult.
Pearce continued, “In the hundred-odd years of history that West Ham have got, I think they’ve had three trophies. Since being the Thames Ironworks in the eighteen erm whatever years. They’ve only ever won four trophies, and Dave [Moyes] was part of that.”
Be careful what you wish for
“Under Dave, they’ve had trophies, they’ve had finals and semi-finals; sometimes it’s a case of be careful what you wish for.”
What made this inaccurate rant all the more galling was the smug look on Sam Allardyce’s face throughout. Clearly, Big Sam was in full agreement with Pearce in the latest tirade at West Ham fans for daring to want a bit of entertainment.
For the record, Moyes did not win us our fourth trophy, and I’d have expected Pearce to know that, considering he’s represented the club on three separate occasions throughout his career.
It should always be borne in mind that often ex pros and fans seem the same thing from different angles.
Players and managers first and foremost want to win. Often they don’t care about how, hence diving, holding heads as if **** when in reality there has been no contact etc etc. They are paid to win.
Fans want to win, but also we want excitement, entertainment what ever you want to call it. We pay for this.
Interestingly, whilst Pearce is certainly a winner in attitude and has won a couple of League Cups, he also played for Cloughie who believed in winning and entertaining the fans.
Allardyce, both as a player and manager purports to be a winner but has won eff all. Entertainment value, eff all.
That said, Fat Sam can point to promotions and play off wins, but if you count that you also have to add to our trophy haul a couple of (old) 2nd division championship trophies and two play off finals……and the Charity Shield, Football League War Cup and the Intertoto cup…..the cabinet is getting full😄
Im getting more and more agitated at pundits opinions lately than Moyes himself. They know nothing!
You do think to yourself how people can reconcile their opinion that clubs like Bayer Leverkusen who, lets face it, are of a similar stature to us, are entitled to have a young, dynamic, forward thinking coach, play a brand of football that excites both their fans and other people, and achieve success to the point that they actually do become feared, but West Ham aren’t. It’s almost as if, in the opinion of the talking heads you get on the BBC, Sky and everywhere else, for us success should be an end in and of itself. But, what would Shearer’s reaction be if his beloved Newcastle played the way we do? Would he be content watching what we do every week for consecutive European finishes? I would use worse language normally but in this case I’ll simply say “like heck he would”.