By CandH’s top blogger Allen Cummings
Two games down – two disappointing performances – two demoralising defeats!
Not exactly the way we wanted to end the first week of Project Restart. It leaves us desperately looking for a spark – something or someone to help kick-start our season. To give us at least some hope that the remaining seven games aren’t going to become a slow, torturous journey to an inevitable conclusion.
David Moyes will surely be hoping that ‘spark’ could come in the shape of a fit-again Sebastian Haller. The big Frenchman has been absent from the defeats by Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur – and how we’ve missed him – and the presence he brings to the team – and others around him.
By all accounts Haller looked sharp and impressive in the two behind-closed-doors games against Queens Park Rangers and Crystal Palace – scoring in both. Expectation was high! Then in typical West Ham fashion injury struck and Haller dropped out of contention.
Our better moments have definitely come in this protracted 2019-20 season when Haller and Michail Antonio have played together up front, working as a pair. It’s a partnership that was long demanded by West Ham fans – and when Moyes obliged it looked to work well.
Antonio has battled gainfully so far on his own up front, and taken some much uncalled for criticism in my opinion. We know playing as a lone striker is not his forte, but he’s been asked to do a job by the manager and he’s given it his best shot. I don’t believe he should be blasted for that. The problem has been what other options has the manager had? Very few of any worth.
Haller came to West Ham with an impressive 20 goals and 12 assists behind him in his previous season in the Bundesliga – and a £45m price tag on his head. After an encouraging start his form faltered – along with that of the team.
But he clearly has quality when used in the right way. We’ve never been more in need of seeing that than right now! As a spearhead, a focal point, Haller’s presence would not only allow us to see the best of Antonio again, whose power and pace around the Frenchman has already been seen to good effect, it would also benefit Jarrod Bowen, whose ability to cut in and feed off any knock downs could prove vital.
Troy Deeney is central to Watford and their hopes of survival in the way he plays. We need Haller to perform in a similar role. I don’t know what the old fashioned ‘treatment table’ looks like right now in regard to social distancing, but whoever is working there needs to do their stuff – and fast – to get Haller, and our season, on the move again.