Carrying your child is fine but not when there’s work to be done
Some things are just wrong and taking the kids to work is one of them.
Alarm bells were rattling all over the place when I watched Winston Reid and the others carrying their kids on to the pitch yesterday afternoon.
We had heard all about focus, intensity, doing a Spurs on Liverpool and then the kids turned up with ‘Daddy’ on the back of their shirts.
Now, let me make it clear I have absolutely nothing against kids…I was one myself once but there is no place for them in the workplace when there’s a serious job to be done.
All it meant was that the players had mentally relaxed and been made to believe they had done the job for a season – yes, they were given a “it’s holiday time ” mentality.
And the man to blame is Slaven Bilic. He was preaching this message of total focus before allowing an end of term mentality to affect his players.
The performance of the players – if you can call it that – reflected the mindset. It’s time to relax…we’re safe and can now look towards next season.
Bilic has his haters and many of have already seized on this as just another stick with which to beat him at the end of a season when he has had more troubles than enough.
He’s certainly not without fault but I’m not among those who went him gone at this point.
However, I find it more than difficult to accept his decision that the tunnel of the London Stadium should double up as a creche before a hugely important game where his team needs to impress and follow up on a great win against Spurs.
It was a very poor decision and handed ammunition to those who want him gone because they see him as being to soft.
Poor decision Slav…very poor indeed!
In total agreement; could understand it after the match but not before!
Totally agree on this one, couldnt believe it when the players brought their kids out before the match. Quite possibly the most unprofessional thing i have ever seen at a competitive football match and totally disgraceful. I have supported Slav to this point but that raised a massive question for me about intensity and desire to win every game.
As soon i as saw the kids in the tunnel i said to my Mrs ,”no way are we going to compete today” . Totally the wrong thing to do .
Completely wrong it gave a holiday time attitude and it showed with the players.
You could argue that during the game it appeared that the kids were on the pitch in West Ham shirts where all the adults had Liverpool ones on.
Also we already know that Slav lets family and kids come in when the players are training, the West Ham family etc none of that should be happening as its a distraction, once in a blue moon maybe under special circumstances or on an International week if you have won the week before but not regularly and never on a week when you have a match to play.
That result just goes to show how weak our squad really is. A PL club should have 23 PL standard players, maybe not 23 top draw players but good enough to hold their own. No one on that pitch can hold their head up & say they gave 100%. Disgraceful
I read a couple of days ago the Bilic says we don’t need anymore squad players…really?
get shot of last summers Dross & bring on the talented youngsters together with at least 3 or 4 TOP players. Stop signing loan players & free signings of ok-ish guys from weak leagues from around europe.
This summer is massive for the club, screw up again & we wont be so lucky next season.
I might be wrong Essex but I don’t think the squad is that weak, I want to see how good they are with proper coaching and training, judging them on Slav and his team’s coaching how can we tell ?
Considering that Liverpool had an awful lot more to play for yesterday, I don’t the family event at the beginning had much to do with anything.
The season is 38 games long, it shouldn’t make any difference which game it is. Each final league position is worth £2m, that could be the difference between buying a player or missing out. £2m for the wage bill….
There was a mass exodus after the fourth goal, at the doors of entrace ‘H’ there was chaos, the doors weren’t open as per normal, anyone with half a brain would realise that there would be mad rush for the gates after West Ham went 4 down, not the Stadium controller again!
Everyone was saying typical West Ham, couldn’t organise a p*ss-up in a brewery.
I saw pictures of the ‘lap of appreciation’ in front of empty stands – how embarrassing!
Same at ‘J’ there was a bloke with ‘Safety Official’ written on his high viz trying to get people from not leaving via the one little door that was open, I said to him ‘pal just get the bloody doors open’ he said ‘it’s too early’………..didn’t he know the season finished last week.
I bet you lot are all over 50 aint ya.Grumpy old men with nothing better to do than bleat on football forums.
I am not a Bilic hater but I am one of those who think he has failed very badly this season & who thinks we are asking for big trouble if we start next season with him in charge. But to be fair to the bloke I think the kids issue is a storm in a teacup. I am pretty sure the same thing happened 3/4 seasons ago when again we needed to beat the Spuds to secure safety in the last home game. We smashed them. I remember the kids going round with the players. But it may be they were not around in the tunnel at the start. Can’t remember . But I do think there are more football related sticks to bash him with!