Sitting here watching Blackburn v Bolton, I’m certainly happy that we have the man in the studio at the helm rather than the Scottish Avram Grant currently guiding the sinking ship Rovers. I wanted Allardyce to save us from relegation last season, as I have no doubt he would have done. Instead, our owners chose to wait it out and then bring in Big Sam for the promotion fight. The expectation was simple –promotion and it can’t be denied we are where we need to be in terms of position, but is that enough?
Sam had a massive re-building exercise to do, having lost the likes of Parker amongst others, he also inherited a team devoid of belief, cohesion and spirit. I think this an area where Sam has excelled. Julien Faubert, Winsto Reid and James Tomkins were players with shattered confidence last season, This season, they look completely different – now, you could argue they have found their level in the Championship, I would suggest these players will be playing just as well in the Premier League next season, given the chance. And it’s not limited to those players, Noble and Cole are also clearly enjoying their football and with a player like Cole it is crucial as he is very much an arm round the shoulder type and Sam and his team are ensuring that is happening.
The style of play is clearly dividing some fans. There is talk of the ‘West Ham Way’ – well I’ve been watching the Hammers for more than three decades and the West Ham way in the past 10 years has been to get turned over by any club north of Watford, never score from set pieces and sign sicknotes who barely kick a ball. I’m very happy that the West Ham way has not reared its head yet this season and Sam is bringing in a new mentality to the club.
This may seem like a sycophantic piece to Sam, and I’m openly admitting I’m a big fan. There certainly have been forgettable moments, such as the home performances against Bristol City, Burnley and Ipswich and away to Reading, but I also believe you can cannot cure as a big a wound as our club had without some occasional lapses. What’s important is that we show signs of getting out of the old, bad habits we had, and sitting in second place with a team smiling, we are heading in the right direction...
We are a club definitely under major reconstruction across the board, the boardroom have kept quiet and let Sam Allardyce to the talking. The playing squad is still being restructured, new coaches, new methods and a new stronger mental ethos being installed. On the pitch we haven't got out of second gear and Sam persists with the grunt and groan hoof it and win it method, its not pretty but at the end of the day he is doing a job and that is to get us promoted with what he has got. As much as I'd like to see some youth played but at what cost ... in the summer Sam filled the the major gaps we had in the playing squad. In came a leader in Nolan, Matty Taylor to play wide left, Faye to shore up the defence, however as much as I like Sam Baldock up front we are still lacking any real quality, Cole is still so inconsistant, Carew looks lame and Piquionne totally disinterested.
Sam says he has 25 targets in January, these will again be progressive signings taking us forward, for me half term report reads very well done, however continue the work in progress
Posted by: Tom | 21/12/2011 at 14:15
I think if we give Sam the time then the quality will come, as said previously, West Ham were a total distsre last year, everywhere aprt from in the stands. I honestly thought we'd be 8th or 9th about now and hopefully scrape into the play offs. I think Sam is every bit as good as Harry Redknap and will go on to prove it. Obviously, if promoted, the squad will need to be improved upon but for now it's Championship and there's a danger of getting ' quality ' in name only ( Keane, Mcarthy ? ). Right now I'd rather see more of the same and get where we need to be and then improve again in the summer
Posted by: Dirk Doornbos | 21/12/2011 at 15:45