West Ham: David Moyes hints at what will be key in overturning Bayer Leverkusen tie
David Moyes suggested getting the London Stadium crowd behind West Ham will be key in overturning their Europa League tie with Bayern Leverkusen.
The Hammers suffered a 2-0 defeat at BayArena on Thursday (11 April) with Moyes conceding his side were not quite at the level of their Bundesliga-leading opponents.
Moyes agreed that the Hammers were flattered by the 2-0 scoreline having been thoroughly second best for much of the match, registering a solitary shot to Leverkusen’s 33 and doing well to keep the hosts scoreless until the 83rd minute.
He was defiant ahead of the rematch in East London, though, and spoke of the importance of getting the home crowd buzzing for the return tie (18 April), telling DAZN (11 April): “It’s going to take some performance because they’re a really good team.
“Let’s try to get one and then see if we can get two. We’ll pick ourselves up for next week and hopefully get the crowd behind us.”
West Ham Europa League hopes hang by a thread as Bayer Leverkusen take control
Outmatched is putting it mildly and even outclassed doesn’t feel appropriate enough – the fact that West Ham only lost this match 2-0 is a huge credit to the defensive solidity and organisation instilled by Moyes.
Sofascore‘s statistics of the game make for grim reading, as the hosts flooded forward with 73 per cent of the ball and managed 13 shots on target from a whopping 33 attempts.
West Ham had one of each, via a weak Mohammed Kudus effort in the 10th minute.
West Ham knew what they were facing at BayArena and named a defensive line-up, but it was soon time to batten down the hatches regardless of formation as Leverkusen surged forward with wave after wave of rapid-fire attacks.
Jeremie Frimpong’s endless running targeted Aaron Cresswell in the Irons’ defence, while Alex Grimaldo on the other side gave West Ham zero outlets or options to hit Leverkusen on the counter-attack.
The above does not bode well for Moyes’ side going into the second leg, with West Ham’s only real positive being the fact that Jarrod Bowen – sorely missed as the fulcrum of their attack in this game – could be back in action next week.
Moyes has certainly ridden plenty of waves during his time at the London Stadium, but with a two-goal deficit to overturn against a side unbeaten across all competitions this season, the water on the banks of the Thames is looking choppier than ever before.
In other news, a new update has emerged surrounding the Hammers’ pursuit of Brentford forward Ivan Toney this summer.
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