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West Ham United (a) Premier League
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Date: Monday 14th September 2015, 8.00pm. Live on Sky Sports Venue: Boleyn Ground Conditions: uncoordinated Admission: £25 due to a reciprocal pricing agreement between the clubs. The tickets were printed with £45 on (last season: £43) Programme: £3.50 - like NUFC, West Ham's current cover designs are based on previous seasons - this from the 1-8 loss here in 1986. |
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West Ham United |
Newcastle United |
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2 - 0 |
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| Half time: | 1 - 0 | |
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| Score Sheet: | ||
(9)
Payet
(48) Payet |
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Teams |
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Randolph |
Krul |
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| Substitutes: | ||
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(42) Jenkinson for Ogbonna (59) Obiang for Lanzini (88) Carroll for Moses |
De Jong for Anita (60) Perez for Thauvin (60) Aarons for Wijnaldum (79) |
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| Subs not used: | ||
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Collins Jelavic Antonio Spiegel |
Gouffran Obertan Lascelles Darlow |
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| Bookings: | ||
| None |
Colback Janmaat |
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| Dismissals: | ||
| None | None | |
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Attendance:
A below capacity 34,907 including around 2,200 away
fans whose most vocal chant was "attack, attack, attack" but
which obviously fell on deaf ears. A "refugees welcome"
banner was displayed in the away end.
Upton Park recollections*:
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Goals |
9 mins
Daryl Janmaat's throw
in to Vurnon Anita just outside the Newcastle box was intercepted by Mark
Noble. After a neat exchange of passes with Diafra Sakho that drew the
entire visiting back line into their own box, Dimitri Payet had acres of space
in which to find the net from
the edge of the box with a clinical right-footed finish in front of the away
section.
(The above was compiled from TV footage as your correspondent had an
obstructed view - being on nearby Tudor Road when he heard the roar of the
crowd. Thank you, Transport for London). 0-1
Half time: Hammers 1 Magpies 0
48 mins
An awful attempt at free-kick into the
box from Florian Thauvin was easily cleared upfield, with Victor Moses
setting off in pursuit down the left flank. Reaching the ball on the halfway
line, his first touch was a forward header that took him away from Anita and
left Massadio Haidara to cover.
Debutant Moses left Haidara on his derriere as he reached the box, hitting a shot that bounced back off the bar.
With another home player lying in wait, Thauvin's former Marseille colleague Payet
arrived to knock
the ball home from eight yards, past Krul and Anita on the line 0-2
Full time: Hammers 2 Magpies 0
We Said |
Steve McClaren said:
"We can make excuses and say the preparation wasn't ideal, but it's no
excuse. We felt the preparation wasn't long enough and asked the referee to
put it back.
"I've been in football long enough, and it's usually permitted. It
wasn't. We had to deal with that. I think it was the Premier League that
made that call.
"We said before 'deal with it' but maybe we didn't deal with it. It is
a wake up call for everyone. In this Premier League you need to be 100% and
if you aren't you get beat.
"But we didn't do tonight what we have done for the previous four games in
terms of organisation, discipline and being hard to beat, we lacked that.
"It's a learning process and we've learned a lot tonight. You don't like going through nights like tonight, it's painful, but sometimes you have to.
"Our platform has been hard to beat, disciplined, and this was a wake up call. If we are not right we will get beat. I am not blaming the coach journey, you have to deal with that and we didn't deal with it very well.
"This is a journey and it is two steps forward one step back, today was two or three steps back. Saturday is very important for us. Our final ball was poor.
"We did not do what we have been doing
for the first four games when we looked organised, disciplined, won our duels,
competed. (He's obviously forgotten the Swansea game).
"Could we come away and create chances tonight? Our final ball wasn't of
the quality of West Ham which is why we lost. It is in the heart and the head
and we need a reaction.
"You need these games, they hurt like
mad, but you need them to get the message across.We've got talented
players.
"It's a process, this is normal. These type of nights and games, you don't
like going through them. It's painful, but sometimes you have to learn about
your individuals and your team. We have to learn and move on, and make sure we
give a reaction on Saturday.
"We don't want them (the players) to do that (be over anxious),
they're talented players, they've got ability, they've got quality. That's what
we've got. They've shown that for four games, they haven't tonight. They've been
told it's disappointing, they're disappointed."
They Said |
Slaven Bilic
commented:
"They were late, and we were expecting the game to be put back for
15 minutes. I think they had enough time. I don't know, to be fair, but...
we didn't say, 'Go at them from the start'.
"I mean, we said (that), but we would have even said that if
they had (stayed) a night at Upton Park last night. It would be the
same plan.
"It is very important for him (Andy Carroll). It is very
important for the club. We are all delighted - it's almost like signing a
new player. It was a really good night.
"We fully deserved the three points, we were better from the start and
we scored at the right time. Newcastle put us under a bit of pressure as we
were defending too deep. In the second half I was proud, because we were
solid, good at keeping the ball and great at counter attacks.
"It's small proof that we really did well in the transfer window. (Dimitri)
Payet is a
player I wanted from the start - I've known him for a long time, he is one of those players who is not only
a great player who scores goals and makes goals, but he also makes the
players around him play better.
"I didn't set targets in terms of finishing in the top ten; our target is that we want a good team that can defend with numbers and can
attack with numbers, a team who can keep the ball.
"If we succeed in that that should give us more points. But I don't know if
we will be fifth, or fifteenth."
Stats |
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2015/16: Lost 0-2
2015/16: no win in five games
NUFC games on a Monday night - last 10: |
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Waffle |
Five
games in then and evidence in abundance that the task in hand is more root and
branch than mere pruning and trimming, as the country's lowest scorers slipped
to the bottom of the top flight.
Seven of the starting lineup that secured Newcastle's last league win in May
started tonight, but they encountered a West Ham side with just three
survivors - and rather more commitment and spirit than was evident in the away
dressing room at Gallowgate four months ago.
In many ways - not just the scoreline - the boot was on the other foot for our final scheduled visit to the Boleyn Ground, as
our sloppy and unfocused performance was duly punished. The boots in question
may have seemed to be of the steel-toed variety given the apparent damage
caused to home players, but in terms of what we achieved as an attacking
force, it was a soft shoe shuffle.
A lack of care and a failure to take responsibility were the hallmarks of a
beaten West Ham team in the last meeting, but that coincided with the end of
the Allardyce era and nothing to play for.
What then are we to make of our much-vaunted new coaching collective, who have
so far failed to inspire their new charges to mastering the trick of scoring
goals or stopping them?
Without absolving McClaren, Simpson, Cathro et al, it's tempting to look at
the hollow displays of "big" players like Moussa Sissoko and
Fabricio Coloccini, and conclude that they are repeating the feat of
undermining Alan Pardew and John Carver in the latter part of the last two
seasons.
Certainly Sissoko has an arrogance totally out of keeping with his
contribution and value to the team; a notable absence of blocks, tackles,
passes, headers, crosses and shots giving a lie to grandiose claims of
Champions League suitability.
Something is seriously awry when your main goal threat is playing at right
back, but Janmaat has more of a claim to the right midfield spot - at least
making an attempt to get into the final third.
On easy street with his national team (hosting Euro 2016 meaning no qualifiers
and a strong bond with the coach), does a situation reminiscent of Michael
Owen see Sissoko less concerned with what happens next May in comparison to
what begins in June?
First from the field on Monday, he had to be ushered back out to rejoin his
colleagues, not even having the good grace to look gutted about losing as he
glad-handed members of the opposition.
And with Florian Thauvin still finding his feet in similar fashion to his
predecessor Yohan Cabaye (who took until late October in his first season to
silence doubters), the unproductive central midfield pairing of Jack Colback
and Vurnon Anita failed to shield the defence or prompt attacks.
All that adds up to a big fat zero in terms of goalscoring possibility -
Papiss Cisse again ineffective as a lone striker without support but hardly
aiding his cause in terms of movement and position. It's hard not to think
that a lack of concentration belies the fact he just doesn't want to be here.
Georginio Wijnaldum meanwhile played - and had the demeanour of - someone who
just starting to realise what he's let himself in for, having been persuaded
to swap the top of the Dutch League for the bottom of its English
equivalent.
"Het is niet zoals het was in de brochure" as Kevin Keegan
almost once said in 1992.
Before we go totally off the deep end though in comparing and contrasting
these two Uniteds, it's worth recalling that West Ham's Europa League
involvement meant they were playing competitive games of a sort before we
kicked a ball of pre-season.
Bilic's mob have also been inconsistent and remain a work in progress -
nonetheless, his arrival appears to have had a positive impact on his team.
Sadly for us, the lack of pace and invention allied to naivety in what has to
be called cheating have remained constant despite a managerial change, along
with a lack of basic passing ability and our old friend slapstick set
pieces.
It's easy to overlook how much of an easy ride we gave the Hammers here - as
unthreatening as were at Swansea, although we at least had the partial excuse
of being a man short at the Liberty.
Two goals from Dimitri Payet secured a comfortable victory against a side
whose first priority - and sole game plan - was avoiding defeat. As a result, indifferent performances
came from disinterested players and the game was effectively over in 10
minutes. If that's our approach at Upton Park, it doesn't bear thinking about
what delights are in store for us at the Etihad? two goalkeepers?
There were few visiting players that enhanced their reputations, including
substitutes Ayoze Perez, Siem de Jong and Rolando Aarons who all showed some
neat touches but rarely looked like giving their side any late hope. It
remains to be seen whether any or all of that trio can force their way into
the starting lineup for Saturday's must-win home encounter with Watford.
The visit of the Hornets becomes a massive test of McClaren's managerial
credentials, not only in organisational terms but also motivating his troops
against a side who come north having broken their own winless run.
Anything less than
three points will mean that subsequent games against Chelsea and
Manchester City could leave us firmly rooted in the relegation zone as
optimism caused by new arrivals rapidly dissipates. Defeat would also sadly
render the League Cup superfluous to our season if one looks in purely
pragmatic terms.
PS: Hammers fan Billy Bragg was doubtless in his Dorset dacha rather
than in E13, but to dip into his song book, it's fair to say that Newcastle
fans are still waiting for the great leap forward....
Here's the Bard of Barking showing his colours on Monday, but rather than
gloating over the win, he's actually promoting a plea for football fans to
donate unwanted team scarves, hats and gloves to migrants/refugees in mainland
Europe ahead of the winter. Find
more details online here
Biffa