Darren Bent and Andy Goldstein make West Ham United prediction live on talkSPORT
Darren Bent and Andy Goldstein are both in agreement that West Ham United have a “real chance in Europe” following their win over Arsenal.
David Moyes’ side advanced to the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday (1 November) with a 3-0 win over Mikel Arteta’s side to bring an end to their four-game winless run and silence the growing calls for a change of manager.
While the Hammers still have a long way to go to win the League Cup and face the prospect of Liverpool next up, both Bent and Goldstein were eager to praise Moyes’ side and have tipped them to have a “really good season.”
Speaking on talkSport (2 November, 16:12) Bent said: “West Ham played really well. What they do is effective by the way, they don’t really want much possession of the ball, and what they do when they break on the counter-attack, they are a powerful side.
“They’ve got good squad depth now.”
Goldstein was quick to agree, responding: “West Ham could have a really good season, couldn’t they? They’re top ten at the moment, they’ve beaten Arsenal in the latter stages of the League Cup, we know they’ve got a real chance in Europe. They’re doing really well aren’t they?”
Expectations are rising
You’d have been forgiven for assuming that West Ham’s season was over following their defeat to Everton last time out in the Premier League with many supporters and pundits feeling rather miserable as the Irons’ poor run of form continued.
But one win can do a lot to change the mood around a football club and Wednesday’s win against Arsenal has done exactly that and as Bent and Goldstein have agreed, the Hammers have an excellent chance to still have a very good season.
West Ham still look likely to qualify from their Europa League group, even after their defeat to Olympicos and sit inside the top half of the Premier League, all while progressing nicely through the Carabao Cup to give them multiple chances of winning silverware.
The Hammers have found a way of playing under Moyes that isn’t always the most pleasing on the eye but can be effective and with the added depth to their squad, they could well be capable of fighting on all fronts over the coming months.
However, that added expectation brings with it greater scrutiny and should the Irons have another poor run of results across all competitions, the pressure will once again begin to mount on Moyes.
In other West Ham news, Nigel Reo-Coker has labelled Moyes as his own worst enemy following his recent decisions