At last, at long, long last David Moyes has come close to honesty on squad tiredness by admitting if he’s going to keep flogging the same players all the time he is in danger of breaking them.
I say close to honest because the truth is – as so many fans agree that – has been the case week in week out for nearly two seasons.
What he didn’t say after making nine changes for the game at Brentford today was that none of them did anything more than look like a cast of extras in a very poor piece of football theatre.
He explained that there was fatigue in the squad. He added that winning against Manchester United had given some breathing space,
So we assume that to be the justification. What can’t be justified was the lack of any real performance level from what was effectively a reserve team which included several if his new signings.
He said: “If I’m being honest, if I’m going to keep flogging the same players all the time then I’m going to break them and that’s wrong.
We had an injury to Mick [Antonio] today because I’m sure he’s been putting in the miles in the games and I just don’t want it to be anybody else. That was the risk [I didn’t want to take].
The three points against Manchester United gave us a little breathing space. We aren’t completely safe yet, but that gave us the opportunity to do it. We’ll now go into the semi-final, I’ll dust myself down today, get myself back on it tomorrow and we’ll go in there hoping to reach the final.”
If you don’t play Players that often they tend to get injured and are off the pace. Moyes has stuck to using to few Players to the detriment of the others. So how can he expect to put a number of them together and expect them to work well ? Who was it who did the self same thing last Season ? The man is a menace.
Moyes was given 150m in the summer to challenge on all fronts !!! He never rotated his squad all season. Even a person who does not follow sport would understand if players are not playing they need games to get up to speed. The man is a fraud. He even did not have the sense to go 5 at the back today all we needed was a point from the game. It is horrendous to think we can still be relegated with 2 games remaining.
Trouble us we’re not Man City Moyes doesn’t have the likes of Foden, Mahrez etc to come off the bench at different times. We only have the likes of Fornals, Downes, Lanzini etc. it’s still the best quality squad West Ham have ever had but is it in a par with the top teams? No. When we rotate the team is lessened and up against premier league teams as we saw today against Brentford we’re going to struggle.
You mean having spent 200 million he hasn’t bought well?
OK, So perhaps Rob Newman has not panned out as West Ham (Fans) would have liked, however, those players need to stand up and be counted?
I’m not too down on Moyes given that West Ham are in a better place now, Euro Cup semi and verge of Premiership safety, than most Premiership clubs. Just be thankful you don;t support that train-wreck Spurs!
Rotating on an everybody change basis like today never works. It says everything that the core of first choice players have been overworked and you can’t solve that by throwing in nine rusty players – rusty because he has left them all out too long. Same as last year – Sunday league approach.