Our friends over at West Ham Fan TV spoke to disappointed Irons fans directly after the crushing loss against Spurs at White Hart Lane yesterday.
One Hammers fan told West Ham Fan TV interviewer Nicky Hawkins “That was an absolute terrible performance out there, he shouldn’t have stuck the big man up front playing long balls all the time, he should have stuck Sakho up front, at least we would have a bit of height forward, on the floor beating them around the defence’
Another fan told Nick ‘If you play Sakho out wide you are asking for trouble’
Just read a piece on Leicester and one reason given for their success Bilic should have plastered all over our dressing rooms, ” it’s easier to accept defeat if you have given 100%”
The video-fan reactions (and commentary just posted by canchaz) addressed some interesting ideas, most of which I support. Before posting the main body of this commentary, I’d just like to touch on a couple of issues which came to attention earlier this morning
I addition to the ideas and thought posted by fans on the video, I also noted 2 post-match comments, in which Slaven Bilic,, (1) suggested that the players were to blame, and (2)” the things which were practised at training worked out really well, so I don’t understand”.
First, in response to the issue of who to blame, I feel very ‘touchy’, when I see our manger blaming the team, for problems of his own doing. By starting out with Carroll and Noble (against a team as good as the present Spurs side, Kane included), he effectively reduced us to a 9-man team. Carroll is not our best striker, and Sakho, our best striker was playing at RW? Sakho should have started out at his normal CF, and Zarate (our 2nd best striker in the present squad), should have started the game. This would have increased the potency of our scoring potential, especially, an early first goal. Noble was almost useless, and left poor old Kouyate as the sole person in front of the back 4 to face the might of the Spurs midfield. Song and Kouyate should have been the starting ‘2’ in Slav’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation.
Second, relates to what apparently worked out at Chadwell Heath training, prior to the game. I don’t exactly know the order of each training session, but I am sure they would include either a 7 on 7 ‘match session, and/or an 11-11 session. However, such methods, would ultimately involve West ham players playing against themselves. Did Slav take into account the likely Spurs line-ups and anticipate the dangers involved in the real game. This could have been done, by ‘stacking’ the 7-7 practice sessions, in a manner which might better simulate how the actual game might have evolved. Since I’m not privy to what goes on at training, I shall make no further comment, except that a manager of Slav’s quality would have made such provisions.
‘The Big Issue for Today’
A number of comments posted here, and elsewhere, have questioned whether, Slav’s apparent preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, is the best, and is Slav willing to consider alternative set-up formations which may, for the time being, work better. Furthermore, some folks have expressed concern about Slav’s possible insistence on the one formation, which works for all players, rather than considering the most suitable formations for the squad players available. In mind of these comments, I’m going to stick my neck out and suggest a formation, which I think should at the very least, be considered, if not actually used. I hope that Slav does ‘not turn out to be a dedicated follower of fashion (cf old Kinks song of the 60’s)’. Although popular with many EPL and European managers alike, Slav, I hope has checked out the reality of whether the 4-2-3-1 formation is optimal. If he makes the right starting selection, then maybe the 4-2-3-1 pattern will stand the test of time. Is this (with the WBA game in mind,) the best time to consider something like the following, which, on paper, looks promising.
Thus: Formation, 4-4-2 (straight or in diamond)
Start-up West Ham formation, (depending on fitness of Angelo Ogbonna):
Adrain
DF4 Jenks Ogbonna/Tomkins-Reid (c) Cresswell(vc)
MF4 Moses Song-Kouyate Lanzini
ST2 Sakho-Zarate
‘Impact’ subs:3 out of Antonio/Obiang/Jelavic/Noble
It is my sense ,that this line-up, represents our best chance of playing ‘the fast-attacking style’ (West Ham Way), and scoring the all-important early first goal, and in furthermore, of scoring a quick second, before the opposition knows what has hit them!!
Looking forwards to comments & suggestions!
Keep the heads up!
COYI,
Maxie