Andy Gray tears apart Edson Alvarez after ‘shocking’ West Ham moment v Man City
Andy Gray and Richard Keys singled out Edson Alvarez for a “shocking” moment as West Ham were defeated 4-1 by Manchester City on Saturday.
Pep Guardiola’s side took the lead through Savinho’s deflected cross on 4 January, wrong-footing Alphonse Areola before the Brazilian’s magical feet helped create the second goal for Erling Haaland.
With Julen Lopetegui’s players punished for their lack of defensive ability, Alvarez’s efforts stood out the most in the beIN Sports studios, ducking away from an easy header before the opening goal.
Speaking live via beIN Sports [4 January, 3:51pm], Richard Keys asked: “What’s this defending here on the edge of the box?” to which Gray replied: “Oh, that’s poor. That’s shocking – just go and head it.”
Edson Alvarez slammed after West Ham failures v Manchester City
While Guardiola’s side would have been favourites to claim all three points at the Etihad, the Hammers did have plenty of chances of their own to score the opener.
Crysencio Summerville, Lucas Paqueta and, most of all, Mohammed Kudus missed several chances to fire past Stefan Ortega, only to see their misses punished by the reigning Premier League champions.
The Hammers finally showed their quality in the final third as Niclas Fullkrug scored his second goal in Hammers colours, finishing off a smooth move from Tomas Soucek.
However, Lopetegui may not have enough time to turn things around and solidify his defence, with supporters calling for him to be sacked by David Sullivan straight after the match.
Those voices have been calling for his head ever since taking over from David Moyes, but with no sign of positivity at all, the owner’s silence on the current situation is deafening.
Of course, Man City were always going to be the favourites, but to be 4-0 down before the hour mark to an out-of-form team is absurd. It cannot continue and the manager will know that.
In other West Ham news, an agent has confirmed new talks with Tim Steidten, with a player set to leave the London Stadium.
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