West Ham still poised to progress despite Europa League Sevilla defeat
It wasn’t the dream night in the Spanish sun David Moyes and West Ham were hoping for on Thursday but things aren’t all over just yet.
The Irons were beaten 1-0 by Sevilla in the first leg of their Europa League round of 16 tie thanks to a second-half goal from Munir.
Moyes would have liked to be ahead in the tie or at the very least level heading into next week’s return leg but maybe being 1-0 down isn’t the problem it might sound.
At 0-0 for instance, the Spaniards’ mindset is to win the game and play their natural way which is something that would obviously benefit them.
With a 1-0 lead, however, they might be thinking of simply drawing the contest at the London Stadium and that is where the Hammers can capitalise.
The slender one-goal advantage could well lead to Julen Lopetegui’s side becoming complacent and that only ever leads to one outcome.
If such a thing does occur next week, then Moyes and West Ham fans can almost relax knowing that their opposition will allow them plenty of opportunities to score and if the attackers are on point, it could be a demolition.
The boss himself will know that they too have to be better than they were in the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan but they might be boosted by Jarrod Bowen’s return if he can overcome his current niggly injury.
The 25-year-old will miss Sunday’s clash against Aston Villa but his fitness for Thursday’s crunch game is as yet unknown.
If the Irons can get past the six-time Europa League winners, then there is no reason why they shouldn’t be considered favourites for the entire competition.
In other West Ham news, Michail Antonio has taken to Twitter to react to last night’s defeat in Spain.
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