News

Irons lose two points via shocking defending and VAR

|

West Ham 3 Brighton and Hove Albion 3

So into the bottom three we sink on a day when the performance went from a fabulous 2-0 and 3-1 up to the pits of hell.

Diop had slipped home the opener from a fine ball in via Snodgrass, who then put us further ahead before bang on the interval.

It couldn’t have been better timing but a seriously poor Fabianski punch from a Brighton  corner two minutes into the second half rebounded off Ogbonna and into the net giving the visitor  hope.

Snodgrass however, halted their ambitions again with a fabulous long range effort and that looked like that…except that this is West Ham 2020.

The visitors fought back again as Pascal prodded home before the video assistant referee awarded Glenn Murray’s dramatic late leveller despite the striker clearly appearing to handle the ball in the process.

A shocking decision which led to Brighton turning on the style for the last 17 minutes and they could easily have scored one or two more.

The result was as hard to take as any this season and whilst we can moan all night about the VAR decision, frankly the Hammers defensive performance bordered on school boyish at times and how on earth Moyes sorts that is a mystery.

It was the entire reason for the loss of two points!

Michail Antonio was quite sensational during his 70 minutes on the pitch and once he left the action the Hammers had absolutely no out ball to anyone who could keep the pressure off and that is so worrying.

With no striker bought in the window he simply has to stay fit – and preferably on the pitch for 90 minutes or we will remain in real trouble.

Jarrod Bowen may have something different to say about that and will be available for the next game along with today’s debut boy Tomas Soucek who performed admirably throughout and looks a very good player.

But right now the outlook is very bleak indeed. This was a game we should have won and needed to win big time. In the end we all but lost it via that horrible defensive display.

.There’s no light on the horizon and right now things look very grim indeed.

Share this article

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

26 comments

  • phil bv says:

    The problem as I see it is we allow teams as much possession as they want without closing them down .you have to harass the opposition into making mistakes this is why Liverpool are doing well.look at the stats to see what I mean ,my coach once said to my team when we have the ball they can’t score,how true.against Liverpool last week we looked like cart horses against stallions.

  • John says:

    Nothing to maon about with the VAR decision, the right decision in the end was made. we’d be much better off moaning about the defensive mess ups that allowed it to happen in the first place.

  • Chris says:

    Fornals was growing in confidence and playing better every game…..until Moyes arrived…..Moyes is destroying Fornals and keeps playing Lanzini who is a shadow of his former self. Pelligrini’s stuborness cost him his job – hopefully Moyes will see the light.

    • in your blood says:

      Our defence has been poor for the last two seasons and without that problem being sorted out, it will make no difference to how well we play and how many goals we score – every manager sees things in their own way, but surely by now, Moyes can see that Masuraku is rubbish at defending and when he came on he cost us both the 2nd and 3rd Brighton goals and that’s regardless of the latest VAR decision which has also been very inconsistent and certain clubs have suffered with that – COYI ⚒

    • Norfolk Iron says:

      Pellegrini’s incompetence cost him his job. That and his desire to enrich members of his family and Husillo’s. Seriously, look at the rubbish they brought into the club and what it has cost us (the owners)! Just think how much better that amount of cash could have been spent – cover in every position? Balanced squad? Players who are ‘any good’? Honestly, Pellegrini screwed the club, he and his mates left with millions of our (the owners’) cash and left us a squad in tatters. He should be nicked.

  • Dave says:

    We have been letting in 2-3 goals a game for as long as I can remember.
    How numerous managers have not sorted this is beyond me.
    We haven’t defended since Alardyce, I just can’t see how anyone can’t see Cresswell and Masuaku are two of the worst left backs in the top two divisions, let alone the centre backs.
    Truly awful, we have had 3 years to sort the defence, its just comical.
    Pelegrini and his mate have left the squad in a complete mess.

    • Norfolk Iron says:

      Spot on! The “squad” Pellegrini left behind is a joke, you wouldn’t set up a kids team like it. Forget the board, Pellegrini is the villain in this piece, Moyes has got an impossible job but the two most recent signings our board managed to get over the line may just be enough to help him.

  • Hammero says:

    Anyone who has watched us all season know we get over run in last 20 mins. Noble needs to be replaced at this time. Not blaming him for defeat but he is ineffectual after an hour. He pretty much has said this. So why Moyes left him on again and watch us get destroyed is baffling, but not surprised as Moyes is a busted flush as a manager

  • mark wiggins says:

    I think Moyes list is the game with the subs Antonio has to stay on and why does he not play Fornals. What a stupid decision and the players sell stupid mistakes. Haller has to do much more he is not giving enough & need to see much more effort from him . I think Bowen will give us that extra something but the defence need sorting out.

    • Robert Paul Bass says:

      Only watched on a stream so wasn’t really able to see if Antoniio was struggling physically.before the substitution, but he does play at a high intensity. The problem it seemed to me was of that starting eleven, four were going to struggle to do ninety. You almost have to force Snodgrass through, not one else can deliver a half decent dead ball. We needed an extra physical midfielder to come on, but we didn’t have it. I can’t count Lanzini or Fornals (both to me lightweight) I know Fornals has his supporters, but I really don’t know if he can handle physicality of this league

  • Norfolk Iron says:

    So tired of listening to people blaming the board. They’ve backed whatever manager we’ve had with funds and in, Pelegrini’s case, it’s been frittered away. They thought they’d found a winning manager and made him one of the best paid managers in the league. He responded by selling all of our forwards and replacing them with a cart horse of a player whilst at the same time employing his own son and Husillo’s son as scouts. His coaching comprised of telling everyone to think like a big team. Brilliant! Don’t get me started on some of the players…..

  • Simon M says:

    Irons lose two points via shocking defending and VAR … and bad substitution. One of my worst WH days ever.
    Earlier today, I watched Kenya loose a wonderful lead in a sevens rugby match and lost the match bad. And said to myself … may this not happen to WH today … and walah?
    And to top it all, we had the ghost of Roberto past in our goals today. Fab, O Fab where were you 2day? Unbelievable. Can it get any worse? Let’s hope not.
    Forward and upward strong now. Coyi. God bless West Ham.

  • Darren says:

    Glad your not using VAR as an excuse. Replay shows it’s
    close but no handball. Disastrous defending and poor management from Moyes. Antonio off understandable to keep him fit, but Arthur on and we go 5 at the back – totally unbelievable.

    • Helen Ludlow says:

      What about Fabianski being held by Murray for their first goal that’s why he couldn’t get any height on the punch and it hit Ogbonna. Why no VAR on that goal!

  • jeffrey lewis says:

    Can’

  • Jeff says:

    Championship here we come… Two games where we’ll get zero points and the teams above us will drift away… Owners MUST be held accountable for the awful mismanagement…
    Can’t wait to play QPR etc next year…

  • hammers64 says:

    Souceks performance and knowing Bowen will add that pace that Antonio does is the only thing to cheer tonight.Not sure there is another team that throws it away like we do.Its like a curse and of course at the bottom everything goes against you.If Murray had scored that goal against Liverpool or Man city it would have been wiped out in a breath by VAR.We need a defence coach Hugh.

  • Peter bendall says:

    The club is a shambles from board room to the pitch . No point in having a very good looking acquisition in midfield if he is alongside a statue . I am afraid Noble contributed nothing again and to take off Snodgrass and leave him on is a farce. We will need to get very lucky to escape this situation . It is heart breaking to see what is being done to our wonderful club . COYI

  • Wembley1980 says:

    I’d like to think it was hard luck but in truth taking of a forward and bringing on a midfield/defender just invites pressure and when your rubbish at the back the outcome is usually the same. And at closer inspection it’s not handball from Murray just desperation on our part…I think it’s fair to say it’s over.

    • Steve says:

      I feel sorry for David moyes he had every right to change things with the game heading for a win. He also has every right to expect players to come on and do their job professionally and Masusku was totally negligent along with Diop for those 2 goals. He’s being let down every game by the standard of some of these players performances.

      • johnham1 says:

        Steve, we had to win this game. He has the right to make decisions but not bad decisions which has been his achillis heal in his career. Antonio was not injured. He had to stay on. One of Moyes terrible decisions today. Played Fredericks who in my opinion makes Diop nervous as he knows he is just not good enough, and then to leave Noble on who simply was a spent force in those last 20 mins. Should have brought Fornals on for Noble. This is what cost us the game.

  • Ajw306 says:

    I’ve said all along that in decision would cause relegation and I honestly believe that result has sent us down. With our remaining fixtures I only see us getting 39 points and im gutted by that result, we had to win. If you slate me for being negative then so be it but i feel it’s all about momentum and with our run of fixtures I cant see us building those 40 points. I will support the team no matter what but something has to happen at the top of this club. Loads of bid I hear for players in January, that not planning that panicking., we are where we are but I hope I’m proven wrong. Come on boys.

Comments are closed.