West Ham Roundup: Pellegrini takes blame, Mills in awe of Yarmolenko, Zabaleta apologises
In today’s West Ham United roundup, we take a look at what news has been doing the rounds for the Hammers. Manuel Pellegrini has taken some of the responsibility for the embarrassing defeat to Oxford United, Danny Mills speaks highly of Andriy Yarmolenko, and Pablo Zabaleta has apologised for the ‘poor performance’ in midweek.
‘The responsibility is first on me’, says Pellegrini
Report: As told by BBC Sport, Pellegrini believes he is partly responsible for the defeat in the Carabao Cup to Oxford. The Chilean said: “The whole team didn’t play well. Not only did we concede four goals, but we didn’t create too many chances.
“We missed too many passes from the beginning and the responsibility is first on me because I picked the players, and second on the team that didn’t compete.
“It’s easy to say that we played very badly, but Oxford did everything they needed to win this game. They played with a lot of motivation, with desire and we didn’t play well.”
Verdict: It is very easy to point the fingers at the man in charge when a side loses 4-0, but in truth, the likes of Jack Wilshere, Pablo Zabaleta, Pablo Fornals, Robert Snodgrass and the many other experienced players should be breezing past a team that are mid-table in League One. Players of such great experience – including some who have won major trophies – should not need a manager to manufacture a win against a team placed 75 positions lower than them, and as a result, the players have to take a large chunk of the blame.
It really is hard to blame Pellegrini for this one, as the Hammers had 63% of the ball but registered just nine shots as opposed to Oxford’s 17. In reality, it was just a dreadful performance from the travelling side, and the players should be the ones who have a long and hard look at themselves, not the manager.
Mills in awe of ‘outstanding’ Yarmolenko
Report: Speaking to Football Insider, former England international Danny Mills has heaped the praise of star man Yarmolenko after another superb display last week against Manchester United. Mills insists West Ham must get the Ukrainian on the ball as much as possible, and said: “He’s a very good player. Maybe lacks the pace of some but we’ve seen him in Europe for many, many years. Outstanding left foot, great quality on the ball.
“If Pellegrini’s going to play to strengths, give him the ball, get him on the ball as much as possible. You have to buy players to fit the way you want to play and it looks like that is what Pellegrini has done.”
Verdict: The former Borussia Dortmund man may not be the quickest out of the blocks but at 6ft 3, Yarmolenko will give almost any defender something to think about with his physicality and special left foot.
As he did before his awful injury last year, the 29-year-old has bagged twice in the early stages of the Premier League, smashing home against Norwich City and then giving his side the lead over United last time out.
This season, West Ham have certainly placed themselves in an early fight for the top six, although they may need a bit of fortune along the way. However, if they can keep Yarmolenko fit, they may find themselves breaking down the barrier of the big clubs.
Zabaleta ‘sorry’ after shock defeat
Report: As reported by the Evening Standard, experienced right-back Zabaleta has apologised for the team’s horrendous display against Oxford in the League Cup. The Argentine said: “If you look at the performance tonight, it was not anywhere near our standard and also in the way we lost was not good.
“I thought it was a poor performance from everyone. We are not the first Premier League team to be knocked out of the Carabao Cup. We saw Spurs and other Premier League teams struggling to win games like that.
“We still need to learn how to play those games, especially when you come from a big win like it was against Manchester United last Sunday. This was a completely different game against a League One team who play a different kind of football where the intensity is higher. That is why you have to perform well enough to win those games.”
Verdict: Quite remarkably, it is now the third year on the bounce that West Ham have crashed out of a cup competition at the hands of a club from the third tier. Last year saw Wimbledon beat the Hammers 4-2 in the FA Cup and the year prior saw notorious giant-killers Wigan Athletic overcome David Moyes’ men 2-0 in the same competition.
Now, after the defeat to Oxford, West Ham have made a bad habit of crashing out early in a competition that they should be prioritising.
The club have not won a major trophy for almost 40 years when they won the FA Cup in 1980, and the Carabao Cup may have been their best shot at ending that dreadful drought.
Of course, Pellegrini did make nine changes. But that is not an excuse for a team battling in the top end of the Premier League, regardless of who comes in and who misses out. Knowing the passion and honour which Zabaleta stands for, he will mean this apology – it’s now dependant on whether or not he and his team can turn things around.