Danny Murphy admits David Moyes will keep West Ham United in Premier League if not sacked live on talkSPORT
Danny Murphy believes West Ham United will “definitely” stay in the Premier League if they keep David Moyes as their manager and that he has earned enough credit in the bank to keep his job.
The Times reported on Monday (20 February) that the Scottish manager is set to be sacked if the club lose at home to Nottingham Forest in their upcoming Premier League clash, with Rafa Benitez “ready” to take over if this eventually arises, according to the Daily Mail (21 February).
Speaking live on talkSPORT, Murphy implored that the Hammers keep faith in Moyes to lead them away from the relegation zone – which they are currently occupying with just 20 points from 23 games this season.
“West Ham fans are probably torn, I might be wrong,” he said (20 February). “Some would back him to the hilt and believe that if he stays in charge they stay up. I believe that, I’m on that ship.
“Some will be thinking ‘time for a change I want to see some more creativity, and I want to see players playing with a bit more freedom’.
“I personally think at the moment, he’s earned the right to see out the season and I believe that if he stays in charge, they will definitely stay up.”
Troubling times
After a mini-revival in the last month, things have suddenly turned incredibly sour for Moyes at West Ham United.
The manager was quite rightly criticised for how he set up his team in the 2-0 loss to Spurs at the weekend, with the back-five limiting their creative output considerably.
The likes of Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio were anonymous for large parts of the game and highlighted why the club have scored a meagre 19 goals from 23 games this term.
Moyes now faces pressure like never before from the fanbase, with the crucial upcoming games against Forest, Aston Villa and Brighton likely to decide his fate at the London Stadium.
If he manages to pull the team away from the relegation zone in this space of fixtures he should probably remain in post until the end of the season, but all of these matches hold their own difficulties.
Steve Cooper’s side have been one of the form teams in the league since the New Year and highlighted their quality by nicking a point off Manchester City last week, while Brighton and Aston Villa have been buoyed by their individual managerial appointments before the World Cup break.