It was a miserable Saturday afternoon for West Ham as Southampton punished a dreadful start and never really looked back. The Hammers found themselves behind within 2 minutes, and by the 11-minute mark they were already 2-0 down following a pair of woeful defensive lapses.
Southampton imposed themselves from the outset, dominating possession, moving the ball with greater accuracy and purpose, and consistently forcing West Ham onto the back foot. Yet ironically over the full 90 minutes, West Ham finished with 28 attempts on goal compared to Southampton’s 15, while also registering 10 shots on target, winning more corners and controlling much of the play.
It was ultimately West Ham’s defending that was nothing short of awful throughout the first half. Too many players were caught out of position, runners went untracked and Southampton repeatedly found acres of space in dangerous areas. The third goal just before the break effectively summed up the hosts’ defending up, with Southampton slicing through far too easily to establish a commanding lead.
Replacing Morato at half time started to shore up the West Ham ship – but the damage had been done
The decision to replace Morato at half-time was long overdue, with the Brazilian enduring a torrid opening 45 minutes. Equally puzzling was the absence of a genuine holding midfielder, which begs the question why Soucek didn’t start. Southampton were allowed to run through midfield far too easily, exposing a lack of protection in front of the defence and leaving the back line vulnerable throughout.
To West Ham’s credit, there was an improved response after the interval, and late goals gave the 3-2 final scoreline a more respectable appearance. However, Southampton were comfortably the better side for long periods and fully deserved their victory.
There now appears to be a genuine Bermuda Triangle operating somewhere around Rush Green, with Adama Boiro becoming the latest player to disappear into it. He joins Maxwel Cornet, Edson Alvarez and Songoutou Magassa to the long list of missing players.
Ultimately, this was a performance that raises more questions than answers. The defensive organisation was poor, the midfield lacked balance, and Southampton exposed both weaknesses with ruthless efficiency.
Following the defeat, Nuno was critical of his side’s start and admitted West Ham were second best during key periods of the game.
To make matters worse Swansea were destroyed by QPR 5-0 at Loftus Road, so a win at the London stadium would have enabled West Ham to take the top spot, on goal difference replacing Middlesbrough.
West Bromwich Albion up next, who are one point behind us. If West Ham are serious about automatic promotion, displays like this will need to become a thing of the past very quickly.
West Ham would have gone top with a win. They almost always experience a nosebleed in such situations. It’s in the club’s DNA, it just doesn’t have a winning drive and mentality from top to bottom. There hasn’t been an ambitious board of directors since the 1960s. Perhaps this board can change that, but it won’t happen overnight.