Premier League Rescue Racing: Moyes can’t relegate with Hammers squad, but needs to work as soon as possible

A two-week break from English football = the perfect time to recap the balanced bottom half of the Premier League. This time we look at the first relegation position, where West Ham are languishing. The Hammers are constantly told they can’t be relegated with a quality squad. But with 12 games to go, it appears that relegation is in the cards.

West Ham have been in huge trouble since the start of the season. It hasn’t had a strong season so far, in which it has taken seven points from three rounds, and is therefore fighting for bare survival. Apart from that, they have reached the quarter-finals of the Conference League.

Passivity doesn’t pay

Whatever the results, coach David Moyes is sticking to the system that has ensured his success in the past two years. Two defensive midfielders, with the occasional five defenders, and a ten man to help the team defend.

Moyes even goes to such extremes where he deploys only two offensive players. Not for nothing have the Hammers scored just two more goals than the worst scorers Everton, Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton.

The need to find weapons

The poor productivity doesn’t just stem from the defensive system. The past two seasons West Ham also wasn’t an offensive machine, but the offensive players knew that if they helped defend a close win and didn’t score, it wouldn’t affect their deployment for the next game.

Moyes hasn’t found a first striker yet, Michail Antonio is being replaced by Danny Ings, and Italian summer signing Gianluca Scamacca hasn’t been given a proper chance. Even Jarrod Bowen has no absolute certainty in the line-up, which doesn’t help his cause.

The plan for the rest of the season

Despite the poor table position, West Ham still have two games to play, plus arguably the best squad of all. The only thing that can send it down a competition is the demanding schedule caused by the Conference League procedures.

Of the big six teams, the Hammers will still face both Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham. They will challenge their rivals for relegation twice at home (Southampton, Leeds) and three times away (Bournemouth, Crystal Palace, Leicester).

Source: Premier League