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Bad defeat but we move onwards and upwards

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Payet4Remember the 5-1 defeat to Arsenal which raised all the familiar old relegation fears…couldn’t score, couldn’t defend and Slaven among the big favourites for the chop.

The only positive – or so it appeared – was that we had Dimitri Payet, who we believed could rescue our season – how wrong, how very wrong we can all be at times.

Then came the A 2-2 draw away at Liverpool, followed by three straight wins and now we have won five have now e of our last seven.

Ok, last night was not good but A Heritage Sportsbook review of the lines now shows we are going into games against lower table sides as heavy favourites, and drifting to as big as 66/1 to be relegated and just 7/5 to finish in the top 10.

That looks a great bet right now as we should really finish above the likes of Bournemouth (a team in free-fall due to an atrocious defensive record),

Burnley (terrible away from home) and Leicester (who are already a long way behind) and can even think about challenging Stoke and Southampton for eighth.

A review of the lines at leading betting sites shows that Bilic has gone out to the 10/1 or 11/1 mark in the line for the next manager to leave his post, with David Moyes, Walter Mazzarri, Aitor Karanka and Claude Puel all ahead of him in the betting.

The feel-good factor is back and the London Stadium is on the up. Payet seemed like a dark cloud but he too has become a silver lining as his baby behaviour and departure helped the team find its spirit.

He went from hero to zero in absolutely no time but he’s gone after a series of nonsensical and childish incidents which must include his exile to the youth team and his car has been vandalised.

Andy Carroll is a far more important player for us right now, and we look guaranteed to stay up.

Payet has gone and here’s money in the bank with the board and Slav ready to give it a right go in the summer transfer market and we have three winnable games in front of us.

Onwards and upwards!.

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Hugh Southon is a lifelong Iron and the founding editor of ClaretandHugh. He is a national newspaper journalist of many years experience and was Bobby Moore's 'ghost' writer during the great man's lifetime. He describes ClaretandHugh as "the Hammers daily newspaper!"

Follow on Twitter @hughsouthon

0 comments

  • Billy says:

    If its any consolation my work mate who is a Chelsea fan is still peeling himself off the ceiling from laughing after i introduced him to the West Ham fan blog that is WHTID.I have never seen another teams fan laugh so much at a laptop.He literally had tears in his eyes ha ha lol

    • Two Tone Jez says:

      **** that place i stopped going on it when it started to look like it had been hijacked by spud supporters.Some of them act like spuds disguised as our fans!

    • Poplar Hammer says:

      Tell your mate to look at Uber Chelsea twitter if he really wants a laugh.
      As for WHTID, i’ve read equal nonsense on this site in last 24 hours.

      • Coolio says:

        Bit sensitive are you not Mr.WHTID.I take it you are one of the lab rats on speed who have been banging away all day B-)

  • hammer8909 says:

    Best thing I’ve seen on the internet today… “Bilic had Snodgrass on the bench, Guardiola had Aguero. Enough said”

  • Two Tone Jez says:

    I cant believe i have seen people moaning about selling Tomkins & ending up with Fonte. that is the worst case of rose tinted glasses i have ever seen.Once Fonte is settled he will be & is twice the player Tomkins is,or have they already written Fonte off after one match.Well thats nothing unusual for West Ham supporters is it….

  • Coolio says:

    Bilic’ last rites being read.A new manager being sourced & pats on the back between fans who have been critical of Bilic through the season..its some what of a big deal to claim to have done that already it would appear..
    Already said it but we have some peculiar fans who proudly boast of having already criticized Bilic.Wheres the glory in admitting to that.Do you get an extra jaffa cake ??

  • Hammer64 says:

    Just been listening to radio driving home. They had the guy from FootballManager on there. He gave their predictions the game gives- Chelsea to win PL, Boro, Sunderland & Hull down. Leicester just escape the drop on last day. We end on 50pts!! And we beat Chelsea! So that’s 22ptsfrom 14 games. Well…their computer must have one of the West Ham optimists inside it is all I can say!! Happy days ahead folks- book your seats for Chelski now. They didn’t say what the score is gonna be…

  • Sticky Fingers says:

    Some great fellas on that blog billy real hardcore long time supporters i loves them meself.On the flip side you have some cocky little know it all buggers who thinks everyone talks **** and they are the almightys gift to football.Mouthy little toads

  • Sticky Fingers says:

    I would snap someones hand off for 50 points meself it will take some doing though

  • Hammer64 says:

    It is only a bit better than we have done so far. Say 6 wins/ 4 draws. Sounds easy if you say it like that. Actually no it doesn’t! Only four defeats between now and end of season. They are having a larf!

  • Radai Lama says:

    Ok so we sack Bilic & who do these fonts of wisdom suggest we replace him with.Wtf does it matter they would be telling the new man how to manage within 10 matches anyway 😝
    38-23=15 game left to get 22 pts.Come on 64 wake up man 😂

  • Hammer64 says:

    Mad to change manager now, even if there was an obvious replacement …..put it to bed for now, then we can come back to it in the summer & start slagging each other off again then!

  • Hammer64 says:

    Mad to change manager now, even if there was an obvious replacement …..put it to bed for now, then we can come back to it in the summer & start slagging each other off again then!

    Radai thought we had played 24 after last night. Maths not my strong point. OK so we can afford 5 defeats. Well done mate- you have cheered me up a bit. 22 from 15 is doing quite a bit better than 28 from 23. Even I can do the maths on that…er….I think. 1.5pts a game compared to ….less than 1.5. I need a drink.

    • West Ham Fan No 32 says:

      If we were to average 1.5 points per game for the rest of the season it would be very good, it is possible and would put us in line with roughly the points per game we scored last season, we haven’t showed the same form so it will be interesting to see how we do without Payet’s magic. Although we have sold him and good riddance I still wish the chairmen had just kept him, it galvanised the team having someone to prove wrong now we don’t have that because he is gone so again Southampton is where we need to declare our intent for the rest of the season.

  • Billy says:

    I’ll tell you what Jez i think Trump can forget waterboarding as a form of toture on prisoners.Threaten them with having to read the FIFA17 managers on WHTID 24/7.They would spill their guts within an hour pmsl

    • Poplar Hammer says:

      You telling me that we have’nt seen Armchair Managers on this site since yesterday’s game

  • Michael Miller says:

    50 points sounds really optimistic, last night showed the Squad up for what it is – really lacking in quality and lacking depth. Manchester City are a good team but if you stand off them and keep giving the ball away you’re fighting a losing game.

    It’ll be interesting what Bilic does when Kouyate is fit – you’d think he’d be straight back in midfield and either Noble or Obiang would be sacrificed. The other obvious change would be Snodgrass straight in for Feghouli.

    Personally I think Bilic’s days are numbered, he’d be incredibly lucky to last the Summer – he’s been badly scarred by the Payet debacle.

  • Coolio says:

    Billy that is quality pal though i shouldnt really laugh
    Maybe his days are numbered Michael,who knows.Its strange though isnt it that we had won five out of seven before lastnight.I know Lama said it in jest but in a way its true.What does it matter who manages our team they will soon be torn a strip if we are not in the top four or five.Its a well paid but thankless task being a football manager.Win a few & you are just doing your job,lose a few & you are satans love child with experts everywhere telling you how to set the team up & how we should play.
    Easy to do when you aint walking in their shoes.

  • cas_blue says:

    It’s no coincidence that the two teams that have battered us are Arsenal and Man City. Two teams that play amazing football on the ground. Our pitch is huge. Watching from the upper tier you really notice the space. It’s no wonder these teams won 14-1 against us. We can’t compete player for player against them. What worried me was that we didn’t learn from the first Man City game. I expected to see us set up more defensively last night. Then when I saw the team I was worried.
    However, that said, we aren’t going down, we are a good side and it’s been a season that we will remember for all the wrong reasons. We will get there, the stadium issues will sort themselves out. Keep the faith people! This is the only blog where the majority of Irons fans are positive so come on, let’s get behind the team and finish as strongly as possible. COYI!!!!!!!!

    • Stratford E20 says:

      Its also no coincidence that Watford scored 4 against us and Saints scored 3 and that we played appallingly against Hull and Burnley. They all play amazing football apparently.

  • Hammerintheblood says:

    Not truer word said!!!!!

  • Radai Lama says:

    Lol dont say that we are one of the only sites that is positive you will get us shot as board lovers Cas_Blue.Even though we ripped them a new one for about three years when Hippo Head was manager 😉
    Personally i have just decieded moaning like a tithead on a site will get me nowhere.Its easier to get home from the game go in to the garden & kick the sh*t out of the wheelie bins for 5 mins 😂😂

  • cas_blue says:

    Wheelie Bins? I kicked the cat!

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