Our series of 2015-16 Premier League team previews continue with a look at the inconsistent West Ham United.
Summer transfers
Last season ended with perhaps the most significant departure, that of manager Sam Allardyce. Slaven Bilic, former Croatia manager, arrived from Beşiktaş J.K. and quickly stepped into the market. The departure of last season’s chief creator Stewart Downing was more than made up for by the arrival of Dimitri Payet from Marseille. Alex Song returned to FC Barcelona, having spent the 14-15 season on loan at West Ham, and Bilic compensated for this by signing Pedro Obiang from Sampdoria. Central defender Angelo Ogbonna, a £7.9 million signing from Juventus, added vital reinforcements to a beleaguered back line. With Carlton Cole and Nene leaving the club, promising young attacker Manuel Lanzini has been loaned from Abu Dhabi club Al Jazira. Raul Jiminez is also set to sign on loan from Atletico Madrid in the next week or so. Finally, and perhaps most crucially, impressive right-back Carl Jenkinson, who shone last season on loan at Upton Park, was re-signed on loan for another season. A striker and midfielder are still expected to sign before the transfer period closes, but it has been a highly positive period so far.
Last season
Ultimately, Allardyce’s final season in charge of West Ham went much the way his previous three had gone; largely effective, if uninspiring, football, resulting in a comfortable mid-table finish, having flirted with relegation only briefly.The team had opened up the campaign brilliantly, losing only four of its first 17 matches, and playing a swashbuckling, high-intensity style. Defensively, even during a spell where a vast amount of the first choice defenders were crocked, the team was well drilled and stout. And yet, even during the team’s best moments, there was always a caveat. Andy Carroll and Kevin Nolan had been injured to begin the season, allowing for Downing to move into a central role, with the searing pace of Diafra Sakho and Enner Valencia ahead of him. It was no coincidence that this state of affairs coincided with West Ham’s excellent run. However, as soon as Nolan and Carroll were fit again, Allardyce fell back into old habits, moving Downing back out to the wing, and instating Nolan in the middle. The good results dried up completely; West Ham won only three of their final 21 matches. When Allardyce’s contract was not renewed by the board, no great outcry was heard. At some point, it seems, safety from relegation can come at too great a cost.
Manager
Bilic’s Croatia side played with considerable zest, famously knocking England out of Euro 2008 during qualifying. He played with Ivica Olic and Eduardo up front, two scurrying forwards, both under 5′ 10″. With Luka Modric and Niko Krancjar behind them, this was an attack focused around skill, dribbling and swift counter-attacking. At Beşiktaş, Bilic tended to play with a lone striker against stronger teams, and then sometimes a striking duo against the weaker sides. But in Demba Ba, he had a crafty, multi-talented target man, able to play with his back to goal, with the pace to run in behind defenders effectively.
The suspicion is that a quick, counter-attacking system will be preferred. One wonders exactly how often Andy Carroll will feature as a first choice striker in 15-16; he possesses, at times, a highly effective modus operandi, but is limited to fairly traditional styles of play. French international Payet is a sublimely gifted playmaker – he led Ligue 1 in assists by a country mile last season – and he will almost certainly occupy a No. 10 role in the lineup. The signing of Payet indicates that Bilic is looking to provide the Frenchman with darting runners ahead of him, and Valencia and Lanzini are two non-traditional wide attackers with whom Payet could work beautifully (Matt Jarvis, an utterly conventional winger, perhaps less so). Needless to say, it is difficult to see where Nolan, still the nominal club captain, will fit in to Bilic’s plans.
Mark Noble and Chiekhou Kouyate, two defensive-minded midfielders, will play reservedly, covering for their full-backs, Cresswell and Jenkinson, who will look to get forward as they did to such great effect last season. The defensive unit will likely resemble last season’s exactly (“if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is the motto here). Reid, Collins and Tomkins performed admirably last term in the centre of defence, with Adrian one of the league’s most impressive shot stoppers.
There is considerable pressure on Bilic; West Ham cannot even entertain the idea of going down this season, with the Olympic Stadium to fill in 2016-17. Bilic will have to find his feet relatively quickly in a new league but, with the club backing him in the market, he should have the tools to, at the very least, ensure safety.
Strengths
The team ought to retain the defensive solidity that saw it through last season. Reid, Tomkins and Collins have all formed robust partnerships with one another. Similarly, the two full-backs should improve their play, both entering their second season with the club. Kouyate and Noble proved a highly effective midfield duo, diligent and disciplined, and Obiang, if his final season with Sampdoria is anything to go by, should adequately make up for the loss of Song (who, as it happens, is still rumoured to return to the club before the window closes). It all points to a season with a handsomely low goals against tally.
Weaknesses
Alas, still a dearth of striking options remain. With it now near-reckless to assume that Andy Carroll can remain fit for a full season, the only proven goalscorer (and just one season’s proof) is Sakho. He too was injured last term, so a new striker must be brought in. Moussa Sow and Javier Hernandez are the latest to be strongly linked with the Hammers, but until one or both have been secured, a glaring weakness exists at this end of the pitch.
Key Player
Ex-Lille man Payet arrived at the club with his last employers, Marseille, bemoaning their failure to retain him. This, of course, is always a good sign, and Payet’s numbers in Ligue 1 last season speak for themselves; he led the league in assists and key passes, he scored seven goals, and was successful in 55% of his take-ons. By all accounts, Payet is a concentrated mass of attacking imagination. With Stewart Downing now a Middlesbrough player, there exists a creative void that Payet is well-equipped, and expected, to fill. He ought – by the time the transfer period is over – to have enough attacking options ahead of him, and will be well protected by the midfielders behind him. His ability to impose his will on West Ham’s matches will be crucial to their success this season.
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Best XI
(4-2-3-1): Adrian (GK); Cresswell, Reid, Collins, Jenkinson; Noble, Kouyate; Amalfitano, Payet, Valencia; Sakho.
Prediction
A fair few things have to go right for Bilic. Firstly, he has to improve on the showings his side have dished out in their Europa League qualifiers, namely the three red cards in five games they have accrued. Secondly, he has to make sure (and how much of this is within his control is debatable) that at least two more attackers, including a dedicated striker, are brought in before the transfer period ends. West Ham have had an excellent window so far, but the news of Valencia being out until the new year makes that second point even more critical.
Bilic is a capable manager, one that should be able to get the team playing the attractive, winning football the fans have cried out for. West Ham are not favourites to go down this season, and should not, barring a catastrophic injury glut. At the risk of sounding cynical, the Europa League is low on the list of priorities for the 15-16 campaign, and it may turn out that an early exit is a blessing. A firm mid-table finish is expected.
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