It doesn’t seem like that long ago that West Ham United was being talked about as a potential contender for a Champions League spot. Considering they were holding down a place at Christmas, there was every reason for their fans to buy in. However, the club fell off big time following the break and by the time it was all said and done West Ham United finished the season 12th in the English Premier League standings. So what is it that went wrong and how do they fix it?
Here is a look at four important things we can take from West Ham United’s performance this past season.
The Result Is All That Matters
It was an absolute statement when Sam Allardyce was sacked and another reminder to the entire staff and roster that result is all that matters. Allardyce had a deal with management before the season that West Ham United would have to finish 10th or higher for him to keep his job and despite all of the injuries he was forced to deal with, they kept their word and fired him when his team failed to reach that mark. It just didn’t work out of Allardyce as his team looked nothing more than a middling unit. They finished the season with just 44 goals scored in 38 games while giving up 47 – both numbers well below where they need to be.
Ultimately, Slaven Bilic was chosen as Allardyce’s successor and while many question marks remain, the one thing he can be certain about is that the result is all that matters moving forward. Even though Allardyce was a respect manager, West Ham will not care to hear any types of excuses. They just need results.
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The Club Believes In Bilic
West Ham United reportedly considered Frank de Boer, Unai Emery and Marcelo Bielsa for manager before giving the job to Bilic. While experts cried out about the fact the latter seems the least qualified of the group at least on paper, the bottom line is the men behind the scenes clearly believe he is the one to fix the current state of affairs. Bilic coached the Croatian national team as well as Besiktas, and while his teams may have under-performed in the past, he certainly has the full support of ownership and management for now.
The Need For Creativity In The Middle
Adrian is a solid goalkeeper and West Ham United has a solid cast of defenders –including Winston Reid, James Tomkins, Carl Jenkinson and Aaron Cresswell. While their midfield features Cheikhou Kouyate and Stewart Downing, they could really use a creative playmaker in the middle. There have been rumors that West Ham is interested in acquiring a striker like Loic Remy to help provide some more offensive flare up front but the key to more consistent scoring totals could lay with finding a creative midfielder that can push the ball forward and put the strikers in a better position to score. As mentioned, they only had 44 tallies this season and only six other teams in the EPL had less than them.
West Ham Is Closer Than It Appears
Even though they fell from a Champions League spot all the way down to 12th in the table, there is reason to believe this club is closer to contention than it seems. Wins over Liverpool and Manchester City stand out and considering the injuries this team was forced to deal with, it only makes sense that they suffered a letdown in the second half. It was a bit of a perfect storm as things went sour in the new year with injuries and the slump happening at once. West Ham will return a relatively strong roster that could be even better if they can attract one or two key players. And a fresh start allows them to push the reset button and remember how close they were to their goals just last Christmas.
While the cutoff line might be 10th place for their season to be considered a success it should not be a shock if this team challenges for a top-five spot next season.
