West Ham United (A) | Sun 7th Aug | Post Match Thread

[kun]

I’ll take that all day long.

Not beaten these here in a while, lack of pre-season, Haaland off the mark, clean sheet, 3 points, Grealish looking better, Phillips and Álvarez got some mins, Palmer got on too

 

[Newmoston1212]

Both full backs today was brilliant, like playing with 2 extra CM’s

 

[Brightwell Bros.]

- Thought we controlled the game really well. That's a tricky away game and +2 points over last season. They had a good opening minute, two minutes in the second half (which we punished) and shut up a rowdy opening day ground.

- Cancelo and Walker playing as midfielders. Not sure if that was just for today to take the pace out of the game, or if that's something we are going to be seeing regularly this season. Presumably trying to free up as much room in the centre? Someone more tactically astute than me (or someone at the game who had a better view) talk me through this?

- We already look like we are going to be hard to beat this season.

- Ake might quietly work his way into the first team with these sorts of performances. Good for him. Can't hurt having him hungry.

- Five subs! And all of them looked like they could change the pace and style. I'm sticking to the theory we have about three systems now to shift through. So much more tactically diverse.

- That young Haaland looks like a player to watch in the future.

- On to the next game. Doesn't look like a season that will afford a poor start, so I loved how professional we looked today.

 

[Kinkybyname]

Hahahaha

surprised that hasn't been photoshopped yet!

 

[Alan Harper's Tash]

Imagine what we could be with a left back…

 

[sir baconface]

Brilliant start to the season, lads.

As expected, Haaland opens up new avenues. He’ll do a Harold Shipman on PL defences.

 

[AdamMarrett]

Great performance that against that lot who are hard to beat there, did it comfortably in the end.

Rodri looks like he's gone up another level, Grealish looked a lot better (outside of the predictable meltown in the match day thread) Ake & Dias were great at the back.

Haaland is something else. We all knew it but to see it finally was amazing. The second goal would've just scared the entire league.

 

[bluemc1]

Well I enjoyed that :)

 

[PrezIke]

On Pep using 5 subs today:

Perhaps Pep he will this season more consistently. Why?

1. The squad is more composed of rotation players who are either younger, have spent fewer year trying to become 1st 11 regulars as squad players (Zinch/Jesus), or are more accepting coming off the bench/less entitled to start (Raz/Bernardo) in Palmer, Phillips, Alvarez. If/when we sign someone to help with LB they will also surely be the same as Cucurella was expected to understand he would be a squad player.

2. With the WC coming in the middle of the season and most key players in the squad going, he may need to utilise it to maintain lower risk for injury as the season goes on and get away from what he is accustomed to.

 

[chesterbells]

The bench is ridiculous

Can’t be, after all the players we’ve sold, surely not? ;-)