West Ham United v Aston Villa Match Thread

[aj2k77]

KEA was reasonably good at the start of the season - he looks like a little boy lost today

KEa's had about 2 good games in 16 months, he's absolute gash.

[mr woo]

Absolute wank so far, making a Sam Allardyce side look like Barcelona.

I'm struggling to know where to start in summing up what was wrong with that showing.

The scary part is there's little or nothing on the bench to change it. Its down to Lambert to rouse them now and I'm not expecting a lot. A nil-nil would be a moral victory to be honest.

[Goldie.7]

No goals in over 5 hours of football

[richard moore]

Thank god I didn't go. I nearly always go to West Ham away but I just knew this would be turgid and there is nothing about us currently that wants to make me part with well over £80 and the whole of my Saturday to watch what we are serving up at the moment. Hopefully, that will now lead to us scoring three in the second half...

[gervilla]

Well that was as crap a display from us as I've seen in a long time.

You obviously missed the Hull game.

I did as it happens.
My son's christening was on that day.

[timeoutbigbar]

Missing Delph badly, nothing driving forward from the midfield.  West Ham should be down to 10.  I do worry that there aren't a massive amount of options from the bench.

[lovejoy]

0-0 will be a moral draw.

[pauliewalnuts]

This is quite incredible. A team that can't defend for shit (us) against a team that can't score for their lives ('ammers). It's like watching a drunk trying to poke someone's eye out with cooked spaghetti.

What worries me is that not long ago, we were saying that we couldn't defend for shit, but we'd always score.

Now we've started defending a bit better - a bit - but stopped scoring.

Frightening isn't it? Ironically, we've brought in strikers, presumably to ensure this didn't happen, when what we actually needed was a midfielder or three.

Quite. I don't really know why he bought Kozak, either. Or Helenius. Or certainly both of them, anyway.

The midfield is awful. KEA is a four decent games a season player, Sylla flatters to deceive, Westwood has regressed, only Delph has improved. Tonev looks like a parks player most of the time.

It's all admirable, the young players thing, but it's really, really difficult to make it work, or else everyone would be doing it.

There's also a line past which it becomes an excuse for not buying in decent, proven players more than an actual plan.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Positives:

We're 45 minutes through the game.

Negatives:

There's still 45 minutes to go.
The referee may play additional time.

[PaulWinch again]

Not good enough again.

[Summers]

Where's Gary Gardner at? Isn't he fit again?

[Jimbo]

Positives:

We're 45 minutes through the game.

Negatives:

There's still 45 minutes to go.
The referee may play additional time.

What's our traditional implosion minute?

[PaulWinch again]

We need a massive improvement.

[citizenDJ]

This is quite incredible. A team that can't defend for shit (us) against a team that can't score for their lives ('ammers). It's like watching a drunk trying to poke someone's eye out with cooked spaghetti.

What worries me is that not long ago, we were saying that we couldn't defend for shit, but we'd always score.

Now we've started defending a bit better - a bit - but stopped scoring.

Frightening isn't it? Ironically, we've brought in strikers, presumably to ensure this didn't happen, when what we actually needed was a midfielder or three.

Quite. I don't really know why he bought Kozak, either. Or Helenius. Or certainly both of them, anyway.

The midfield is awful. KEA is a four decent games a season player, Sylla flatters to deceive, Westwood has regressed, only Delph has improved. Tonev looks like a parks player most of the time.

It's all admirable, the young players thing, but it's really, really difficult to make it work, or else everyone would be doing it.

There's also a line past which it becomes an excuse for not buying in decent, proven players more than an actual plan.

The thing is, I'm pretty sure there is a place for Helenius in the team. He's a creative player, can produce the unexpected and looks like he can score, too.

No idea why he bought Kozak, though.

[pauliewalnuts]

Mark Noble has one of the most punchable faces in the game.