West Ham must beat Burnley despite Sean Dyche sacking – Frank McAvennie
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…
After the extreme high of beating Lyon in the Europa League on Thursday, West Ham welcome Burnley to the London Stadium today expecting three points.
The Irons advanced to the semi-finals in Europe but they are on the back foot domestically as they attempt to chase down a top-four spot at the expense of Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur.
Relegation-threatened Burnely should offer a simple task for David Moyes’ side but they threw a huge curveball on Friday when they sacked Sean Dyche as manager after nine and a half years at the helm.
Ex-Hammers striker Frank McAvennie though still sees today’s game as an absolute must-win for his former side if they want to keep their hopes of a top-four finish alive.
“They were hopeless against Brentford,” McAvennie said to West Ham Zone. “Whether they have got their eyes on Europe or not, I don’t know.
“They’ve got to beat people who are down near the bottom, no disrespect to Burnley, West Ham should be beating them.
“I would hope that we can look forward to getting three points against Burnley and finish a good week for them in getting the acclimation from the fans for beating Lyon.”
Ben Mee (Burnley captain), Mike Jackson and Paul Jennings will take temporary charge of the game for the away side, according to Sky Sports journalist Alan Myers, which may throw a spanner into the preparations of Moyes.
But regardless of the change, there should be no contest between the two sides and anything but a win is a failure.
In other West Ham news, a talkSPORT reporter wants this Hammers hero to be in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for the World Cup in Qatar.
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