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It’s time to stop mucking around with this Iron’s game

By Hughie Southon

Tomas Soucek has to be handed back the role which saw him become Hammer of the Year in his first season at the club.

We are often told by managers that it takes a year for players to settle into clubs but that certainly wasn’t the case with the brilliant Czech.

Frankly, I saw him as the best signing this club has made in years in 20/21 and have been astonished to see him play a more defensive role this campaign.

Whilst Declan has been give the freedom to attack the brakes have been put on Tomas and it hasn’t worked.

The stats don’t lie and the 11 goals he scored last season showed, that apart from Declan, he was in a different class to most in the Premier League and was widely admired by many of them.

Some will want to argue that Declan has scored goals from his bursts forward – something Tomas doesn’t do. Rather he is a bit of a Martin peters stealing forward from the back – that’s his natural game.

Declan has managed just one Premier League goal yhis season against Villa, one against Kidderminster and two in the Euro League qualifiers.

We have seen Tomas getting forward more over recent games and as a result he scored a vital goal against Sevilla and has missed a couple of chances in others, possibly as a result of having to concentrate on the defensive role for so long this term.

We reported yesterday that he faces new contract talks in the summer and that being assured he will be restored to playing his natural game shares equal footing with a pay award.

That needs to be taken out of the talks right now by handing him back his most effective role – we really don’t have enough midfielders in the squad to muck around with one of one two best!

This was an indifferent tactical decision in my view and one that needs to be changed right away as we go into the last lap of a vital season.

 

 

 

About Hugh5outhon1895

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

4 comments on “It’s time to stop mucking around with this Iron’s game

  1. Agree to be honest I see him more in the role of Frank Lampard than Peters he has a knack of ghosting into the right slots to score goals, he is also a great ball winner and very disruptive to opponents which is why you see teams play against us through the wings because it’s hard to play through the middle with Dec and Soucek there. Moyes should let him play his natural game, to be honest I think Moyes is trying to do that more this season than lately hopefully we can find the right blend and get him scoring more often and secured to a long contract as he is a superstar COYI!!!

  2. Yes he is a Martin Peters and brilliant at it too – Martin was not a defensive player. This has been wooly thinking along with Kral and it has failed. Restore Tomas’ freedom and they should be smart enough to mix and match – essential change. Another club will take him and make us look silly, which we would be .

  3. Sorry but Declan is by far a better player.
    Soucek was great as he new to the PL and teams hadn’t worked him out. This season he has been easy to work out. Close him down quick and you`ll get the ball of him. Nudge him out the way and he won’t retaliate. He’s not that aggressive. He’s effective though but limited, doesn’t have the skill that Rice does. Players have to change and adapt. Rice plays down the left Soucek down the right of that central pairing. Coufal helped him there ,his absence has negated Soucek.
    Soucek is now scoring again. Don’t think we can stop Rice from developing.

    • One problen there for me. If Tom gets unhappy, as some tell me he is, and I don’t see your comparison as helpful – and then we perhaps lose Dec we are in bother. You don’t score over 40 goals as a defensive midfielder in three seasons if u are as poor as u r making him sound here if u are that inferior or become captain of your country

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