Alan McInally baffled by ‘ridiculous’ West Ham complaints
Alan McInally is baffled by what he deems to be preposterous whinging over the West Ham fixture list this season.
West Ham begin their Europa League campaign on Thursday night at Dinamo Zagreb, and their European commitments mean they will be playing most of their Premier League weekend fixtures on Sunday.
Speaking in a video shared on the Betfair Twitter account, the Sky Sports pundit is adamant there is no justification for any trepidation felt by those associated with the Irons.
McInally said: “Isn’t it amazing, you get towards the end of the season for West Ham and everyone’s giving it ‘it would be great if we finish fourth, fifth or sixth and get into Europe’, now you get into Europe you’re like ‘hmm, do you want to play on a Thursday and a Sunday?’
“I mean it’s just ridiculous. The squad they’ve got they should be able to cope with it.”
Where’s the outcry?
It’s not clear who exactly McInally is aiming his words at – the West Ham staff, players or fans – but it appears to be a fairly general swipe at those affiliated with the Irons.
Perhaps he has a lot of West Ham-supporting friends who have expressed their fears to him, but it’s not something that has been loudly flagged up by fans.
Of course, history shows that European newbies can often flounder in the Premier League while balancing their commitments on the continent, and Sunday kick-offs are generally unfavourable to fans, particularly with regards to public transport and the like.
But, on the whole, West Ham fans are surely buzzing to begin life in the Europa League group stage.
There have to be concerns about squad depth up front, with the Irons only a Michail Antonio injury away from a crisis.
But the summer signings of Alphonse Areola, Kurt Zouma, Alex Kral and Nikola Vlasic have added depth to the other departments, and the club will be confident of progress into the knock-out stages of the competition.
In other West Ham news, Charlie Nicholas claims David Moyes is livid after this recent Irons incident.
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