|
The WHO archives today take us to 2012 where newly promoted West Ham took on the Champions Manchester City and drew 0-0 at Upton Park.
Here is the match report by me.
==================
http://web.archive.org/web/20130117093308/http://westhamonline.net/article.php?6482133||5||
After last week’s disappointing display at Wigan you could have been forgiven for thinking that Manchester City were going to come and give us a good hiding considering that display at the DW Stadium lacked intensity and an ability to create chances.
Whilst it is usually true that teams will up their game against better quality opposition you still cannot take away the fact that this was a very good display from West Ham and if Kevin Nolan’s first half goal had not been disallowed incorrectly for offside it would have been an even better day.
I felt that we had the better of the first half and had at least three good chances which on another day would have gone in. Of course you could put a spin on this to highlight our lack of finishing ability within the squad but I can only feel positive having come away from Upton Park after this performance.
The second half saw us ride our luck at times but some excellent last ditch defending from James Collins and Winston saw us through and when we lost Collins to injury the team really dug in which is something we know we would have seen in our season under Avram Grant.
I am partial to a good old Allardyce criticism but one thing that cannot be disputed is his ability to get his side to grind out results against better quality sides and whereas there were many saying we would lose just about all these games through November and December I could never subscribe to this theory.
If we had played with just half of this intensity against Wigan we would have won that game so in a way this display can invoke some frustration within my mind because we did not stop working from start to finish.
Manchester City chose three strikers to lead their attack which said to me that they thought our defence was weak and that the quality of attackers they could play would be too much for our backline. When you saw our defence it was difficult to argue.
But in Balotelli, Tevez and Dzeko the second Manchester club saw a lot of pretty passing but very little end product as we snuffed out the threat they possess and kept a clean sheet.
All in all this was a good day in which we have kept a clean sheet against a side that scored more goals than any other side in the Premiership last season (93).
The Team
We were forced to make one change to the side that were beaten at Wigan with James Tomkins forced out with injury and he was replaced at right back by Joey O’Brien.
This also saw Jordan Spence recalled to the squad as he took his place on the substitutes bench.
Starting for Manchester City was former Hammer Carlos Tevez who played 26 times for the club scoring 7 goals during the 2006/07 season before joining Manchester United.
The referee was 41 year old Howard Webb from Yorkshire. This was the first match involving West Ham that Webb had taken control of since the Play Off Final in May.
First Half
The Boleyn Ground was packed and both sets of supporters observed a minutes silence in respect of Remembrance Day. Former West Ham great Geoff Hurst carried a wreath along with former Manchester City legend Mike Summerbee.
The minutes silence was observed well and I much prefer this to a minutes applause which I believe simply caters to those who cannot shut up for just a minute.
Four minutes had gone when the first and probably the game’s biggest talking point was produced. A long ball forward (of course) towards Andy Carroll (naturally) saw the big striker fouled (shock!).
The free kick was put into the area by Mark Noble who had cleverly picked out Kevin Nolan who let the ball drop over this shoulder before firing past Joe Hart only for the goal to be ruled out for offside.
It was a technically brilliant finish from a player who does have the tendency to pull out a fine piece of skill and replays clearly show that he was onside and the goal should have stood.
At the other end Jaaskelainen was called into action for the first time just before the ten minute mark when a shot from Samir Nasri saw the Fin parry the shot out to Dzeko whose header across was just out of reach for Balotelli although the linesman’s flag had already gone up.
We came close again when a long diagonal pass found Matt Jarvis who gave the ball to Mohamed Diame who turned, cut inside and hit a rasping shot which went just over the bar.
I was pleased that we were getting in amongst them and Manchester City had not settled entirely so this was an important period if we were going to get ourselves in front.
And we came very close to doing so after another well worked move saw a crossfield pass from Noble find Matt Jarvis who put in an excellent deep cross when Yossi Benayoun met the ball with a volley which was tipped onto the bar by keeper Joe Hart.
The referee did not seem to think that Hart touched the ball and a corner was not given but nevertheless it was an excellent move and an indication of the crossing ability Matt Jarvis possesses.
The atmosphere in the ground was good and Carlos Tevez was getting a lot of love from the West Ham supporters who continue to remember his time at the club fondly.
I was a bit perplexed by the chants of ‘Where were you when you were shit’ to the Manchester City supporters because if I recall correctly, they were always there.
Noble was involved in the action at the other end with a superbly executed tackle on Dzeko which really got the crowd going but then Noble lost the ball but Dzeko saw his weak shot saved easily.
With 33 minutes gone the visitors had their best chance of the game and should have taken it as a free kick was played into the area after a foul from Diame and the ball into the area saw Mario Balotelli stay onside but he put his effort high over the bar from just a few yards out. It was a terrible miss.
We were giving the ball away in dangerous areas in the latter stages of the first half and Balotelli saw another effort go wide after a poor clearance from Diame.
And it was Balotelli who had the last chance of the half when a Nasri cross found Balotelli who flashed his shot just wide.
The final stages of the first half would be how most of the second period would go with us giving he ball away in key areas essentially making problems for ourselves.
Second Half
Early in the second half Collins went down under a challenge from Tevez which saw the big defender require treatment from the physio.
With Manchester City committing more players forward there was going to be space for us on the counter attack and one example of this was when Mohamed Diame burst forward through the middle with the away side back peddling but although a shooting opportunity presented itself he decided to try and pass the ball to Jarvis but the pass was over hit and went off for a goal kick.
From this point on I felt Manchester City were the only side that looked likely to score and at times it was backs against the wall with only some last ditch challenges and poor finishing preventing us from going behind.
Tevez hit a low shot which was saved low by Jaaskelainen and a ball through to Dzeko saw Collins cynically pull him back as we were becoming a little more stretched.
At the other end a cross from Benayoun found Nolan in the area but his weak header trickled wide of the post.
But a better chance would follow two minutes later when Jarvis combined with McCartney which saw the left back beat his man and cross deep for Andy Carroll to acrobatically fire a shot which deflected off the defender and went wide. Without the deflection this was going in.
The game was becoming similar to that against Arsenal when even our free kicks and corners would be turned against us. On one such occasion we had won a corner but Manchester City broke out with such speed that we struggled to keep up.
From one of these counter attacks we nearly conceded what would have been an extremely controversial goal as Tevez crossed for Gareth Barry who used his hand for his first touch but then prodded the ball wide when he had the goal at his mercy. It was a terrible miss but one which saw justice done.
With twenty minutes remaining Sam Allardyce made his first change of the game with Gary O’Neil replacing Mohamed Diame.
The pressure was being applied and the ball was in and around our area far too much for my liking. We had dropped deep and on one occasion a last ditch tackle from Winston Reid saved us after Joey O’Brien had slipped.
A terrific block from James Collins from a Clichy shot followed shortly after and the pressure was certainly being applied.
With 78 minutes gone Allardyce took off Andy Carroll and brought on Carlton Cole in a surprise move as Carroll was still a threat. I can only think he wanted to be able to play passes into space for us to run on to instead of the more direct central ball forward.
Our players were still working hard with O’Neil snapping at the heels of Nasri and Benayoun putting in a couple of good challenges.
McCartney went into the book after a poor challenge on Barry on the left and James Collins was called into action again as he put in another excellent block.
Collins had certainly put in a shift and had been battered by shots and challenges all day long. He was taken off with seven minutes remaining and replaced by Jordan Spence.
The fella sitting behind me was infuriated that we were not bringing on Tomkins instead although this is the same bloke who said when Cole came on that even if he scores a hat trick he will still hate him.
Those final stages were easier to get through than I had thought they would be an the three minutes of injury went quickly and without incident.
Whilst we didn’t really create much in the second half when you see how far we have come in 12 months this is something that has to be praised. There is no doubt that we have made progress and once again we show that we are more than able to compete in this division.
Player Reviews
Jussi Jaaskelainen
Had a case of the ‘butter fingers’ but came away from a couple of dodgy moments unscathed. He will be pleased to have kept his fourth clean sheet of the season. 6
Joey O’Brien
He was nervous to start off with and had no confidence on the ball. For a player who played a lot of his career as a centre midfielder I find it strange that he should be scared of the ball. But then he put in a strong challenge and came off the winner and he grew in confidence. I thought O’Brien put in a really good shift. 7
Winston Reid
Another immense display from the young defender who has firmly cemented his place in our back line and already could be considered a front runner for hammer of the year. He was strong in the tackle but he was able to read the game well and he did very well up against some world class strikers. 8
James Collins
I’ve disliked Collins all season and I am still not a massive fan of his style of defending but he was my man of the match. I felt he saved us at times with blocks and interceptions which were vital. His style of defending is ugly but it is this ugly which got us through this game unscathed. 8
George McCartney
Similar to O’Brien it would seem McCartney has no confidence. Last season you would see him bursting down the line to support the winger but during the first half in this game he looked scared to do so. When he did finally pluck up the courage in the second half he was effective and I thought he had a good second period. 6
Mark Noble
Another busy display from Noble who sometimes struggled with his lack of pace to get rid of the ball quick enough and was out muscled a few times by some pretty hefty Manchester City players but overall Noble was impressive again and played some good passes about. 7
Mohamed Diame
His decision making was poor and gave the ball away too often. When running at the opposition he is excellent and they are not sure what to do with him. Was unlucky not to score in the first half but got worse as the game went on and was correctly taken off. 6
Kevin Nolan
A difficult day for him to get involved as he was up against some top quality opposition but he was still involved in the games main talking point as he scored a goal which was incorrectly chalked off. 7
Yossi Benayoun
Like his last display at Upton Park he was very good. For a player who you would consider as our ‘bit of flair’ the best part of his performance was his work rate. Yossi never stopped going and I thought was superb. 8
Matt Jarvis
Never really got into the game on a consistent basis which was disappointing. Put in one excellent cross in the first half but after that there was not much else going on. 6
Andy Carroll
Another game without a goal and perhaps it is a good job his name isn’t Carlton Cole (or perhaps just black). Overall I thought Carroll played well and was a constant threat as he usually is. Was terribly unlucky not to score his first goal for the club after an acrobatic effort. 6
Subs Used
Gary O’Neil (on for Diame 71 mins)
I was impressed with how hard he worked in his time on the pitch and his bit of energy was a help in those final stages.
Carlton Cole (on for Carroll 77 mins)
Ran about a bit but saw very little of the ball.
Jordan Spence (on for Collins 84 mins)
A massive game for the young defender to be thrown into but he kept his head and did what he needed to do well.
Subs Not Used: Spiegel, Chambers, Maiga, Hall
Bookings: WHU: Benayoun, McCartney, Collins
Man Of The Match: James Collins
Manchester City: Hart, K.Toure, Nastasic, Kompany, Clichy, Milner, Y.Toure, Nasri, Tevez, Balotelli, Dzeko
Subs: Pantilimon, Zabaleta, Kolarov, Barry, Sinclair, Garcia, Aguero
Referee: Howard Webb, 7
Attendance: 35,005
Overall
The last time Manchester City came to Upton Park they bullied us and were able to play their football without much objection. This time around they were given a game and if it was not for a poor decision by the linesman we would have come away with all three points.
The first half performance was positive from an attacking point of view and we created four chances which were unlucky not have gone in.
The second half saw the gritty determination of our side which was equally as pleasing as they were all working for each other and throwing themselves into everything.
Last season we were playing small sides such as Millwall and now we are keeping clean sheets against the Champions.
========================
Other games on this day:
2001: West Ham United 0 Fulham 2
1992: Grimsby Town 1 West Ham United 1
1991: Notts County 0 West Ham United 1
1984: Aston Villa 0 West Ham United 0
1979: West Ham United 1 Wrexham 0
1973: Leeds United 4 West Ham United 1
|
