It was intended as a harmless joke when a West Ham United supporter in the upper tier of the West Stand chorused: “How s**t must you be? It’s only 5-0.” Yet there was a mirthless response from those around him; a realisation there was an element of truth to his chant.
Sunday’s chastening 5-0 loss to Liverpool could have been worse. There were numerous parts of the game when Mohamed Salah single-handedly terrorised West Ham’s defence. When Liverpool were serenely comfortable, they showed mercy to Julen Lopetegui’s side but knew they had the capability to sustain their attacking efficiency. As for West Ham, it was their eighth league defeat and there is a recurring theme about the manner of their losses.
They have conceded three or more goals eight times this season. A picture of their defence may appear if you were to look up the definition of porous. It is a title they have shrugged to shake off, similar to their inability to withstand pressure.
In their two games against Liverpool this season, they have conceded a total of 10 goals (they were beaten 5-1 by them in the Carabao Cup in September). Post-match, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot was magnanimous in not revealing how he exploited weaknesses in West Ham’s defence, but for Lopetegui’s side, it is clear that no lessons were learned from heavy defeats to Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest and Arsenal this season.
Julen Lopetegui cuts a deflated figure during West Ham’s 5-0 loss to Liverpool (Julian Finney/Getty Images)
This year, West Ham have conceded 79 goals, the most by any Premier League club, while it is also their most league goals conceded in a calendar year since 1967 (85).
Premier League goals conceded in 2024
A few well-delivered words can help lift the mood in times like this, but Lopetegui’s plea for improvement post-Liverpool is no different to what he said after defeats to Tottenham, Nottingham Forest, or Leicester City.
“For sure, we are worried about this (our defensive record),” said Lopetegui post-match. “We are not the first opponent that they were able to overcome like this. I think they have played 15 matches away and have won 15 or 14, but we can and have to do better. We have to accept that today has been a very tough day for all of us.
“Above all, for our fans, too. We didn’t deserve more. Today has been a hard loss at home. We have to accept it. We have to learn. We have to look forward and to know that we have a lot of things to learn in these types of matches.”
Lopetegui wants his team to play a high defensive line, but his preferred back four of Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Maximilian Kilman, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Emerson Palmieri have struggled. Vladimir Coufal started against Liverpool, but the outcome was no different.
The graphic below, with the inclusion of Jean-Clair Todibo, who was introduced at half-time, shows Salah being sent through on goal following a pass threaded by Alexis Mac Allister. Alphonse Areola, deputising for the injured Lukasz Fabianski, denied the forward from close range.
The loss to Leicester City in early December is another example of West Ham’s defence struggling to sustain a high defensive line. Jamie Vardy timed his run to perfection to score inside the opening two minutes.
Just before the hour mark, Coufal and Mavropanos played Patson Daka and Kasey McAteer onside. This attacking move culminated in Leicester scoring a second via Bilal El Khannous.
In the same game, Kilman, the £40million summer signing from Wolverhampton Wanderers, is the last man when Daka drives past the defender to seal victory for his side. This was not the first time Kilman has been left exposed.
In West Ham’s previous game, a 5-2 humbling at the hands of Arsenal, forward Leandro Trossard quickly plays a long ball to Kai Havertz, leaving Kilman as the last man.
The defender misses the ball and Havertz duly converts. These are just a few examples in a long list of the team struggling to adjust to Lopetegui’s preferred style of play.
Confidence in the Spaniard’s ability continues to ebb. A good portion of the campaign has seen West Ham play vapid football. It is no surprise supporters felt compelled to boo at full time.
Perhaps, in hindsight, West Ham’s hierarchy will ponder whether it was wise appointing Lopetegui as David Moyes’ successor. When the camera panned to majority shareholder David Sullivan, he was deep in conversation with his eldest son, Dave. Vice-chair Karren Brady, however, was motionless. Lopetegui can be grateful the duo no longer operate with the cut-throat tendencies they showed in their earlier years.
But the speed of West Ham’s regression remains a concern. At this stage in 2023-24, they were sixth in the table, having just sealed an away win against Arsenal. Their decline mirrors that feeling you get when you are watching an underwhelming film but have already committed to seeing it through. You hope it improves, but it does not and you are left to rue the hours you wasted. That is how this season feels under Lopetegui.
West Ham’s four-game unbeaten run against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Bournemouth, Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton earlier this month was fortuitous. That quartet of opponents were profligate with their opportunities, but West Ham finally came spectacularly unstuck against a better opposition in Liverpool.
To compound matters, they face Manchester City next and could be without captain Jarrod Bowen. The forward sustained an injury against Liverpool following a mistimed challenge from Mac Allister.
Life without Bowen is unimaginable, but the same cannot be said about Lopetegui.
(Top photo: Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images)
