Whelan blown away by Noble’s reaction to West Ham’s disappointing start to the season
The West Ham fanbase weren’t enamoured by David Moyes’ recent return as manager, but you can’t argue with the reaction of the players.
The Hammers stars stepped up to the plate in a big way on Wednesday as they put four goals past struggling Bournemouth without reply.
It was a performance unlike any we’ve seen from the east London outfit this campaign, and there’s little doubt that – in the extreme short-term, at least – Moyes has been able to coax something extra out of his squad.
That these same players had been performing so poorly under Moyes’ predecessor Manuel Pellegrini is telling, but the reaction of captain Mark Noble to their stuttering season has been consistent throughout.
That’s something that has caught the eye of former Premier League striker Noel Whelan, that’s for sure.
“You could see the rage on Noble’s face after one of the games [v Crystal Palace], having a go – that’s the fight and spirit that you need now,” he told Football Insider.
“We know the English players have got it, that’s never in question, the heart and the desire and that anger at losing football matches. Is it going to do that for the foreign players? We need to see more of that.
“I love that reaction from Mark Noble, I love it, it shows everything that West Ham stand for – that fight, desire and passion. Now they need a lot more of the players that are there on big money to show that attitude as well.”
Putting aside Whelan’s lazy questioning of foreign players having the same fight and desire as English players, he’s right about Noble.
He turned up against Bournemouth in a big way, scoring twice on his way to a game-leading WhoScored rating of 9.16.
In other West Ham news, it’s being reported that a senior figure at the club could cash in a big bonus if the team avoid relegation this season.