West Ham’s Showing at Liverpool Doesn’t Call for Doom and Gloom

West Ham entered their match against Liverpool unbeaten in four Premier League matches and despite their loss, there is plenty to be positive about.

Spotty refereeing and some unlucky bounces saw West Ham’s unbeaten run end at four games. Liverpool’s attacking depth proved to be too much as a late Diogo Jota strike sealed all three points for the Reds. The Hammers can hold their heads high, however, as there is plenty to be positive about.

Hardest Stretch of Schedule Now Done

Not many were optimistic when looking at West Ham’s schedule to start the season. Matches against Arsenal, Wolves, Leicester, Tottenham, Manchester City, and Liverpool all in a row suggested the Hammers would be bottom of the league and fighting their way back up the table all season long.

Compounding these fears was the flopping season opener against Newcastle. Toothless in attack, disjointed on defence, and coming off of a very underwhelming transfer window at the time, West Ham were in shambles after the 2-0 loss to the Toons.

Since then, the Hammers have lost two, won two, and drawn two along the way, amassing eight points from the most unlikely run of fixtures. The lopsided wins over Wolves and Leicester kickstarted this revitalization, leaving Moyes’ men in a strong position to build in the next stretch of fixtures.

There is Room and Opportunity for Improvement

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The next run of fixtures is an opportunity for West Ham to show that they are not a team that plays up to their competition, but rather that they are just a solid team who can perform against any team in the Premier League.

The next six matches for the Hammers are Fulham, Sheffield United, Aston Villa, Manchester United, Leeds United, and Crystal Palace. Only Villa, Leeds, and Palace are above the Hammers in the table with all of these teams within four points.

While opportunity awaits the team in general, the offensive players will also have a chance to prove themselves against lesser-than defensive setups, none more than Sebastien Haller. The Frenchman came up empty-handed against Liverpool but will have to be relied on while Antonio is injured.

Simplification in his game could see him back in the goals by playing more of a target man style of centre-forward rather than build-up play specialist. He is big and strong and good in the air, if he gets in the box the goals will surely follow.

Defensive Glory for an Underappreciated Unit

With only five teams in the Premier League with a better goal differential than West Ham, their +3 suggests a defensive renaissance under David Moyes. The five-at-the-back system has flourished against the possession-heavy teams and has provided balance to sustain counter-attacking pressure that this system naturally leans into.

The wingbacks have been revelatory with Vladimir Coufal and Arthur Masuaku providing width to the team and impacting the game at both ends of the pitch. This system may not be as effective with teams that cede possession and there may be a switch to a more traditional back four. If this does happen the team will need to drill down and prove their versatility.

Overall, a tough-to-take loss at Anfield is nothing to hang your West Ham head on, especially after making it out from this ridiculously tough stretch of the schedule for the Hammers. The defence is playing well, goals are coming from everywhere, and there lies an opportunity ahead to push on this season.