West Ham Need New Recruits Quickly
West Ham finished five points above the drop zone last season but their survival owed more to the limitations of the three teams below them. Two wins in the last five matches halted a slide which saw them lose six on the spin in early Spring.
Despite developing quality young players like Mark Noble, Jack Collison, Zavon Hines and James Tomkins, the Hammers squad doesn't look like one suited to the Premier League. There have been some good signings like Matthew Upson and Carlton Cole in the past few seasons but all too often the acquisitions haven't been right for the English top flight.
Many were brought in under previous regimes in hasty buys for over-inflated wages. Lucas Neill and Benni McCarthy are two examples of players who arrived at the club already past their best.
Some have been fairly disastrous- Freddie Lujngberg, Kieron Dyer, Diego Tristan and Luis Boa Morte come to mind- while others have just looked unsuited to English soccer. Gianfranco Zola brought in a lot of players who proved lightweight.
Guillermo Franco, Alessandro Diamanti, Ilan, Radoslav Kovac and Manuel Da Costa are all talented footballers but never looked as if they can make more than peripheral contributions.
Last season the Hammers looked like a team without confidence in their style of play. Unfortunately, some of the more consistent performers like Upson and Cole suffered a dip in form. As a result, the new owners, who took over toward the end of 2009/10, were prepared to listen to offers for every player other than Scott Parker.
The problems have continued into 2010/11 with two defeats already and six goals conceded.The additions to the squad have been underwhelming so far- Frederic Piquionne and Tal Ben-Haim are players that Avram Grant knows well but they aren't exactly star names and Winston Reid isn't the biggest name to come out of the World Cup.
The days of making a major splash in the transfer market disappeared with the effects of the credit crunch but an injection of fresh faces is called for urgently. Too many of the current squad appear to be worn down by an expectation of defeat.
The worst part of the two defeats so far has been the meek way the team surrendered. Aston Villa were upset by the loss of Martin O'Neill but still won easily. Even worse, Bolton's goals in their 3-1 win this weekend were all basic strikes,primarily created by route one football.
It doesn't help Hammers fans to see players who have left Upton Park performing at a high level. Bobby Zamora and John Pantsil were integral to Fulham's great efforts last season, James Collins was a solid presence at Aston Villa and Matthew Etherington offered terrific energy to Stoke's campaign.
There is still the core of decent side at the Boleyn Ground- especially among the home grown players- but Avram Grant needs to bring in a stiffening of recruits in the next week who can dispell the air of under-achievement at the club and put some of the missing energy back- otherwise the club are in for another nine month battle against the drop.
