West Ham’s chances of finishing in the top four were dealt a massive blow when they lost 3-1 to fellow CL aspirants Tottenham at the London Stadium in their last game before the March international break. It was always going to be a massive ask of David Moyes’ men, coming barely 72 hours after their exhausting Europa League knockout tie against Sevilla, and the result was on expected lines, with Antonio Conte’s team comfortably winning 3-1.
Lack of investment hurts the Hammers
They were fourth for most of the season, but West Ham fans will be wondering why their side didn’t invest in the winter window. It was painfully obvious to every Hammers supporter that they needed another recognised centre back and a striker if they had to maintain their form. With Angelo Ogbonna injured, Moyes resorted to playing Craig Dawson and Kurt Zouma in literally every game, and when the latter also had a spell out, the Hammers were painfully thin on depth in defence.
Upfront, Michail Antonio can be a terror for defenders, but he’s also had plenty of fitness and injury issues. Moyes played his first team into the ground, and with a congested fixture list in an intensively competitive league, the results were obvious.
West Ham have a decent first XI, but no one on their bench will get into any other Premier League top six side, and therein lies their biggest problem- the lack of quality replacements to keep their main players fresh.
Advantage Arsenal and Spurs now
With Manchester United also struggling for consistency, a look at the odds at the likes of Sportland suggests that fourth place is now really a battle between Spurs and Arsenal.
Arsenal are three points ahead of Tottenham and also have a game in hand over them, but their fixture list is far tougher than Spurs’, with the likes of Chelsea and United still to play for Mikel Arteta’s side (see April ones below)
Should West Ham focus on the EL now?
West Ham’s best chance of qualifying for the Champions League now appears to be via the Europa League, where they are England’s last representatives left in the competition. The Hammers created a massive upset by beating Sevilla in the Round of 16, and if they can beat the Andalusians, who have virtually dominated this competition since its creation, they can pretty much beat everyone else.
French side Olympique Lyonnais are their opponents in the last eight, and should they get past OL, a mouthwatering semifinal clash against Barcelona could await them. Few West Ham fans would’ve ever imagined a European semi against Barca, but it’s very much a possibility currently.
As mentioned before, the Hammers have a solid XI, but bench depth is poor, and Moyes may be better served preserving key players like Declan Rice, Zouma and Aaron Cresswell for the EL instead of making them feature in every PL game.