It’s 6th October 2013, I am at White Hart Lane to watch West Ham line up against Tottenham Hotspur without a recognised striker. West Ham are 2-0 up when Ravel Morrison bursts through from the half way line, beats two defenders and dipped the ball over French international keeper Hugo Loris. Sam Allardyce remarks after the game, “That’s a genius of a goal for me and you will struggle to see a better goal this season”
I was recently told by someone who was at the club during the time that both Mark Noble and Kevin Nolan took the player under their wing, yet sadly he didn’t listen to their advice. Rio Ferdinand echoed this and said he tried to reach out to the player when at Man Utd, yet what the player did outside of the football club affected what he did on the pitch.
Rio Ferdinand went on to say that he was the most natural gifted kid he has ever seen, yet he sadly didn’t have the mental capacity to be a Premier league footballer.
Fast forward to 2024, and many Hammers fans often wonder what happened to the player that promised so much yet failed to fulfil his true potential.
Still not officially retired, the player now aged 31 last played for DC United in 2022. They didn’t register him for 2023 yet he was allowed to train with the club.
Sam Allardyce has recently come out and claimed that the ex Manchester United midfielder was one of the hardest players he ever managed, and wasn’t capable of being a full time professional. This reaffirmed Alex Ferguson’s previous comments “Ravel Morrison might be the saddest case. The problems off the field continued to escalate and we had little option to cut the cord.”
This must have been hard as for all his issues the player had a good heart. After he made his debut for the first team at Man Utd he gave Alex Ferguson a letter to thank him. Ferguson was gobsmacked.
The player often went AWOL during his time at West Ham, going back to Manchester when he should have been training in London. It came to a head when the club had to travel on Christmas Day and Ravel didn’t travel and stayed with his family.
Sadly his time at West Ham duly came to an end. The much travelled player then had spells at Lazio, QPR, Atlas, Ostersund, Sheffield United, Middlesbrough, ADO Den Haag, Derby County and lastly DC United.
For a player with so much ability it’s incredible that he only amassed 157 games in total over a thirteen year career.
In an interview with Rio, Morrison admitted he had regrets, and that he suffered from depression in particular during his spell at Lazio. He was also diagnosed with ADHD in 2011.
It’s a shame that he never fulfilled his full potential – and reiterates that clubs need wider support to help players. Michail Antonio opened up about his own mental health issues earlier this year, and sought therapy which in his words “changed his life”.
His last words are quite poignant, “The quicker we end the stigma for mental health the better for everyone”
What a great read and very sad for him and those who tried so hard to show him the way etc. All solid Pros too.
I think Mental health is being looked at more sensibly now, so hopefully this doesn’t hold anyone back in the future.