West Ham fans will be glad to see the back end of what’s been an incredibly disappointing season, with their most recent blow being a 1-1 draw to already relegated Southampton at home on the weekend.
When Graham Potter arrived in January, there was a lot of hope that the team would be playing more attractive football, but they have scored 14 goals in just as many games, with performances being drab at the best of times.
Potter has won just three of his 14 games in charge, which has left the Hammers in 17th place, leading to questions being asked of the manager and whether he is the man to take West Ham forward.
Boos rang around the London Stadium following the Hammers’ draw to Southampton on Saturday, which reflects the frustrations starting to grow among the supporters.
Potter trying to fix what others broke
When the Hammers’ disappointing form was brought up in Potter’s pre-Brighton press conference, the manager appeared to suggest that much of it can be blamed on the issues that were already present before he joined the club: “You’ve almost got to look at the bigger picture and look at the perspective and look at what’s been happening at the club for a longer period, and it’s also a result of that. We’re having to deal with that.
“Before I came here, for the 40 games before I arrived, the club had conceded 80-something goals in the Premier League, scored 50, so minus 30 goal difference.
“We’re not playing how we want to play, but when you look at where the games were for 40 matches to expect a significant change, in my experience in this league, it isn’t so straightforward.
“I think for 13 matches there’s been improvements, but there hasn’t been in terms of points and the table.”
This response almost feels like a dig at the defensive frailties the club struggled with under the two previous managers, and implies Potter is trying to clear up the mess he inherited.
While statistically you could argue there have been some improvements defensively, with the side conceding 16 goals in 13 league games, there is still plenty of room for improvement even in this department, and the transition from defence to attack appears to be one of the team’s biggest issues that Potter will have to focus on if he wants to see improvements next season.
