By CandH blogger Allen Cummings
Football is famous for throwing up quirky coincidences and strange twist of fate – and it looks to have done it again.
I’m not talking about the re-appointment of David Moyes – the man who saved our club once, and has been charged with doing it a second time. For me the ‘added’ quirkiness to Moyes’ appointment comes in the shape of the opposition he will face in his first game in charge.
Bournemouth are the visitors on New Year’s Day, when we will be looking to record our first home win in six attempts, and put our season firmly back on the rails again. Ironically for me, it was our away game against the Cherries, back at the end of September, that heralded the beginning of our dramatic demise – and the eventual departure of Manuel Pellegrini.
We actually took a point from that game, which briefly took us into third place in the Premier League. Heady days indeed. But the most significant thing in that game was the injury to Lukasz Fabianski, and the arrival of the hapless Roberto.
It would be wrong to blame the goalkeeper for everything that followed, but his subsequent wayward performances were a huge contributory factor to the results that followed, draining the confidence from both the players individually and the team as a whole. The manager should have read the signs early and reacted accordingly. But his stubbornness was not only infuriating but unfathomable. As a result he has paid the ultimate price.
Step forward fate – the arrival of Bournemouth – and the opportunity for new manager to start putting it right where it all started to go wrong. Our season took a dramatic turn for the worse on the south coast – now in the heart of east London, under the guidance of David Moyes there is a golden opportunity to start to put things right again.
We need organisation and motivation from the new manager. We need a performance from the team. But equally as important we need a positive response from us supporters. Let’s get behind Moyes and the team and start 2020 as we want to go on.
Not sure he paid the ultimate price. He and his band of followers walked away with approx 8M. I got sacked once and got a boot up my backside!
Yes, the only industry where you get paid the most for incompetence and leisure time.
I do not understand why there are no specific “lack of performance and achievement” clauses in managers’ contracts, especially when dealing with the likes of D.S.
For that reason, we must assume the length of Moyes’ contract is as it is to minimise such potential leisure time payments.
Of course, that was not the case with Pellegrini, because they thought they were doing the best thing to silence the fans and, presumably, because Pellegrini would not leave his retirement paddy field for less than a 3-year (or whatever it was) contract.
Of course, supporters should always get behind the team and manager…….
Since I believe Moyes is the right appointment for West Ham, irrespective of those who for some reason think he is not good enough for such a big and achieving club, I hope we give him the support and chance to reach the first hurdle: survival in the Premier League.
Haha. Maybe a wrong choice of words Keith. Point taken!
Agree. Abject failure is exceptionally rewarded in the Prem league.
Surely the owners of football clubs can come to some agreement regarding financial pay offs when they sack their manager rather than it being seen as a reward for failure there should be only a percentage of the remaining contract paid to the sacked manager & the same for his staff. Comments & opinions welcome
Well at least we are not talking sack the board or a soulless stadium which I feel is wrong.
However it isn’t just football that rewards failure, how many CEO’s from banks and others such as Thomas Cook got a bonus either just before or as they left a failing company.
That said when I was in sales I had to reach my targets or I didn’t get the extra payments and if it happened more the once you could be on your way so couldn’t those targets be built into a managers contract ?