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The only consolation for West Ham was that there were no supporters present to light the board. Under normal circumstances, the mood would have been toxic after a display that did little to alter the impression that David Moyes’ team is ready for another relegation battle.
Little mercies. A match in and West Ham is already in crisis. Under pressure after the controversial sale of Grady Diangana to West Brom, they needed an answer. Instead, they were uninspired as Newcastle scored an impressive victory thanks to excellent debuts from Callum Wilson and Jeff Hendrick.
It was typical for West Ham to find themselves in damage limitation mode before their opening game. They had spent the week dealing with the aftermath of Diangana’s departure and in these strange times, there was something reassuring and familiar about a handful of supporters gathered off the field to protest David Gold, David Sullivan and Karren Brady hours before the kick. . off.
This is life in this part of the capital. Even Mark Noble had threatened to riot, tweeting that he was “sad and angry” to see Diangana leave. The West Ham captain sets the tone in the locker room and Moyes’s fear must have been that his team didn’t put in the required effort, especially after seeing them lose 5-3 to Bournemouth in their last preseason friendly.
The heat was on and there were times when West Ham, who have yet to make any signings, didn’t seem equipped to handle the pressure. They were nervous at the back, with Issa Diop shaken by the force of Andy Carroll in the air, and Newcastle were the most assertive team for long periods.
While their summer was dominated by their failed acquisition of Saudi Arabia, a strange sense of optimism washed over Newcastle following the signings of Hendrick, Wilson, Jamal Lewis and Ryan Fraser. Jonjo Shelvey pulled the strings in midfield and Wilson seemed determined to make a positive impact after his £ 20 million move from Bournemouth, taking aim whenever he had a shot opportunity.
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The problem for Newcastle was taking advantage of its opportunities. Wilson headed wide when Lewis, the former Norwich left-back, threw a cross in the fifth minute and the forward turned down another decent start later. Shelvey also fired wide and Carroll seemed ready to punish his old team when Diop misjudged a long ball, only for Angelo Ogbonna to deflect the forward’s volley.
Newcastle needed more cruelty. While West Ham lacked pace in possession, they had attacking weapons and staggered threats. Ogbonna and Pablo Fornals hit the wood, Michail Antonio put Karl Darlow to the test after a powerful run and there was an escape for Newcastle when Tomas Soucek headed wide from six yards.
West Ham worked hard, especially when they sensed that the dangerous Allan Saint-Maximin was about to take down on the left. However, the problem for Moyes is that his team always struggles if the opponents keep pressing their weaknesses on the flanks. West Ham have not resolved their weaknesses as a winger and it was not surprising to see them concede the first goal from a cross, even if there was an element of fortune in Javier Manquillo’s shot from the right that deflected Fornals and gave Hendrick the lead. . opportunity to configure Wilson.
Hendrick was more alert than the West Ham defenders when he headed down the first post and Wilson was in the mood for a poacher’s goal, nailing the ball into Lukasz Fabianski from close range. The Newcastle debutants had combined, exposing West Ham’s shortcomings.
West Ham snorted and snorted. Still, Newcastle were comfortable and they sealed the points when Hendrick finished off a counterattack with an emphatic shot.
