Pundit blasts senior West Ham United trio after third consecutive defeat vs Brighton
We’re delighted to welcome former West Ham United striker Frank McAvennie as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at the London Stadium…
Frank McAvennie has slammed West Ham trio Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek and Michail Antonio for their performances in the defeat to Brighton.
The Hammers made it three consecutive defeats to open their Premier League season after losing 2-0 on Sunday, causing concern among the fan base for the coming campaign.
And McAvennie admitted that while the whole team hasn’t been good enough, he singled out three of the senior players for not doing enough and says it’s time for Rice to step up into his captain’s role and drag the rest of the team with him.
“Three games, got to do better, that’s it,” he told West Ham Zone.
“If it was a school report it would be got to do better. I don’t think they’ve been up to pace. For West Ham, a David Moyes team, they have not been up to scratch.
“The [other] teams look sharper. I don’t know what it is, it’s a strange one. Considering David has normally got them bang on.
“I feel for Soucek because a couple of headers that could have brought him back his confidence if one of them had went in. Unfortunately, there were great saves.
“I got a bit of stick last week for Declan, when I said about him going on A League of their Own when he was dancing about, and I said that was alright if he was doing well. But it’s three games. The boy’s not played well at all.
“Scamacca didn’t start after scoring a goal, you’d have thought he’d be on fire. I don’t know why he is starting Michail Antonio again. I’d have kept him in, but I’m not a manager. I’d have kept the boy in.
“He scored his first goal for the club, the next game I’d have kept him in. He’d have been buzzing, he’d have been on a high, and Antonio could do with it because he’s not done it. He’s another that’s not done it for the last few games.
“But it’s the whole team. It’s collectively so hopefully it’ll just turn, but you can’t say it’s him.
“I watched the game and Benrahma made a great run down the wing, and then there’s about three players around him and he kept going down the wing, and they highlighted it on the telly and I thought, ‘there’s nobody sprinting to get into the box’.
“Soucek wasn’t sprinting, there was nobody sprinting. I was thinking, ‘that’s not West Ham’.
“Because if he puts that ball into the box, there’s nobody there. If he put a great ball in, the boys in midfield, why are you not sprinting to get there? So there’s a lot that Declan has got to fix.
“He’s the captain now, he’s the example. This is where he’s got to stand up and be counted and bring the players round about him and forward with him. Because we all know how good he is, but it’s time like this where he’s got to stand up and be the captain.
“None out of three is not good.”