It was a startling admission for a manager to make.
"The dedication to the cause is missing," Slaven Bilic told reporters following West Ham United's 5-1 thrashing at the hands of Arsenal last time out. "The majority of the team, individually, have lost that intensity.
“It is not one of the reasons [for West Ham’s poor form]. It is not maybe that. It is a fact: 100 per cent, 500 per cent.”
Publicly criticising your players is generally seen as a last resort after all other options have been exhausted, with Bilic presumably deducing that some sort of dramatic intervention was required as he attempts to inspire an upturn in fortunes. Despite receiving the backing of the club’s hierarchy this week, the ex-Croatia boss will be fully aware that his head could be on the chopping board if things do not improve soon.
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The league table does not make for particularly pleasant reading right now. West Ham would probably have been considered last season’s surprise package were it not for Leicester City’s extraordinary title triumph, yet a club who secured European football with a seventh-place finish in May now find themselves mired in relegation trouble.
Just a single point separates Bilic’s men from the drop zone. Given that a trip to Liverpool is their next assignment, they could easily finish the weekend in the bottom three.
It has been quite the decline. The move from Upton Park to the London Stadium has often been the starting point in discussions seeking to explain West Ham’s slide – despite what Bilic says, there are multiple factors at play – and the effect of the relocation should certainly not be dismissed out of hand.
The new ground has clearly been a disaster from a supporter’s point of view, with the negative atmosphere in the stands contributing to some nervy and tentative showings on the pitch.
As far as the bigger picture is concerned, though, it would be a mistake to attribute all of West Ham’s ills to the difficulties they have encountered at their current home.
The problems began in the summer transfer window, when a total of 12 new players arrived in east London. Such an influx seems to have disrupted the dynamics of the group, particularly as hardly any of the arrivals have made a positive impact.
Simone Zaza, Gokhan Tore, Alvaro Arbeloa, Havard Nordtveit and Jonathan Calleri have all contributed little, while Sofiane Feghouli and Andre Ayew have spent more time on the treatment table than the field of play.
There have been numerous collective failings, too. Only Swansea City have shipped more goals than West Ham in 2016/17, with Bilic’s backline breached 29 times in 14 matches. The side’s defensive organisation against Arsenal was shoddy in the extreme, with Alexis Sanchez and Co afforded far too much time and space to wreak havoc last Saturday evening.
Their problems are not limited to that end of the pitch, either. Dimitri Payet has created more chances than any other player in the division this season, yet West Ham have found the net on just 15 occasions. Injuries have not helped, but a failure to settle on a first-choice centre-forward – seven different players have started up top, including winger-cum-right-back Michail Antonio in the draw with Middlesbrough and defeat by Everton – has been damaging.
“I’m positive that we aren’t going to be in this situation in one month, two months, three months,” Bilic added in his press conference last weekend. “But we are talking about now and now we are.”
Acknowledging the problem is the first step. Now it is time to solve it.
Big six bringing big style
When Manchester United take on Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, it is to be hoped that the game's quality and intensity matches what we have seen in other encounters between the Premier League's top teams so far this season.
The arrival of managers of the calibre of Pep Guardiola, Antonio Conte and Jurgen Klopp in the last 14 months, as well as the continued presence in the division of Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger and Mauricio Pochettino, has had a hugely positive effect on the quality of football on display.
The vast majority of meetings between the so-called big six have made for excellent viewing this term, ever since Liverpool defeated Arsenal 4-3 on the opening weekend.
Liverpool's 2-1 win at Chelsea, Tottenham's 2-0 defeat of Manchester City, Chelsea's 4-0 thrashing of Manchester United, City's 2-1 victory over United, Chelsea's 2-1 success against Tottenham, Liverpool's 1-1 draw at Tottenham, Chelsea's 3-1 triumph over City and Arsenal's 3-0 win against Chelsea all featured some fantastic football, the standard of which has only been on show sporadically in recent years.
Arsenal’s 1-1 draws with Tottenham and Manchester United did not set the world alight, but the only major disappointment up to now was Liverpool and United’s goalless draw at Anfield – and even that game featured an engrossing tactical battle between two teams with very contrasting approaches.
The six sides’ distinct styles have certainly added another layer of intrigue, with Mourinho’s United arguably the only team lacking a clear identity at present.
It is also pleasing that goals have not been at a premium, unlike during the mid-to-late 2000s – English clubs’ European exploits suggested the Premier League was at its strongest during that period – when 0-0 and 1-0 tended to be the most common scorelines whenever two heavyweights locked horns.
Long may the current trend continue.
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