There’s little point in beating around the bush…that was a poor performance with the team finally paying the price for a shoddy start which is becoming as much a feature of the season as the big away victories.
The first half – as it has been on many occasions this season – was a total non event for us which would perhaps be more acceptable had Saints been all that – the weren’t.
And anyone who thought lightning might strike twice when Saints when down to 10 men as Villa had done on Tuesday after Wanyama’s shocking foul on Payet wasn’t watching the same game as me.
With Payet again failing to spark and Alex Song again showing much that’s worst in his game,it was never going to happen.
The Hammers lacked pace and tempo and as a result a very solid Saints defence kept its fifth successive clean sheet as the Irons huffed and puffed making very little impact -disappointing doesn’t get close.
Saints keeper Fraser Forster was called on to make just one save when he did well against a Reid header from a Payet cross and to be honest that was about it.
However, it was disappointing in the extreme to watch Song lose possession in a dangerous position and set up a Saints attack which could easily have brought a goal as early as the eighth minute.
A minute later some disorganised defending saw the home side go in front when Valencia – not fancying the tackle – produced a half challenge and Maya Yoshida leapt in to shot home from six yards.
We never looked like getting it back. The build up was pedestrian and laboured at times and for me, Valencia was lightweight, and Song ineffective as a creative force.
Even after Wanyama had justifiably been dismissed Saints kept a decent shape and we simply didn’t have the subtlety to break them down.
So we leave the south coast still haven’t not managed to get a single victory at the place – this was a seriously bad day at the office and Slav has to pick the team up big time for Tuesday night.
Picture show Yoshida scoring the only goal of a less than average game
Shoddy is the right word. We passed the ball fantasticly well in our own half, but rarely found our own player in the final third. the first ten minutes were dire, and despite our overwheming posession stats, we never looked like scoring. Alex song always needs three touches when one should be enough, and should be banned from shooting. Yes we are safe. Yes we have the best squd in years, if not ever. But we lack a clinical finisher. and a midfield creator and enforcer to play alongside Noble, who I thought was our man of the match. That man may be Kouyate, but it isn’t song.
The trouble with many supporters is they keep on seeing us through rose coloured glasses.
The first warning signs came way back before Christmas when we had a group of games we should have won easily and the best we did was a couple of points but it was ignored.
I posted before this match that the early results today showed that we have to keep winning or we could quickly find ourselves sliding back down to 10th place. This kind of performance will see that happen rather quickly.
As for European football, we need to do it via the cup because we are now too far back to trouble th teams above us.
Leicester is the perfect example of everything we are not. They have no ‘big money’ owners just like us, but unlike us, they consistently punch above their weight.
As for the shoddy start syndrome, this is not ‘becoming a habit’ but has been a part of WH as long as I can remember, along with our habit of trying to coast home in the last ten/fifteen minutes. This disease seems to afflict us no matter who is in the team or managing it.
If there’s one thing I pray that we leave behind at the Bolyn its this disease
**** poor. We could of played till Xmas and not scored. For me Valencia is the most over rated player and up front he is lazy with a poor 1st touch and can only score a screamer. I know he scored 4 goals but the last two were lucky the global didn’t save them. Miss hits the both of them.