Five factors behind West Ham’s miserable start to the 2016/17 season

Add as preferred source on Google

Form of Noble/Kouyate

The CDM duo of last season were dynamic and instrumental in holding together a strong defence. Noble is, of course, a West Ham legend who has been a first team player for the best part of a decade, whilst Kouyate is similarly impressive, chipping in with his fair share of goals. This season, the pair appear to be more lethargic for one reason or another, causing Bilic to rotate with Pedro Obiang, Edmilson Fernandes and Havard Nordtveit. Whilst Noble’s form in particular has improved of late, West Ham’s captain and Kouyate will both need to improve sharpish to ensure the Hammers propel themselves into the top half.

Not knowing best defensive line

Following Aaron Cresswell’s injury before the season had even commenced and following the departure of James Tomkins to Crystal Palace, Bilic seemed to have a quite a selection headache. Yes Masuaku could play left back, but was he good enough to start from the off? Who is the best centre back pairing from James Collins, Winston Reid and Angelo Ogbonna? Was Sam Byram ready to take on a starting XI place or would he rather have Michail Antonio playing further back? All these questions appeared to have no definite answer following the first few games as Bilic successively tinkered with his back line in an attempt to figure what works best. The Hammers managed to concede four goals against the likes of Watford and West Brom in September, proving the defenders were clearly just as confused as the manager. With two consecutive clean sheets prior to the Everton game, one would hope that this issue is now slowly resolving itself…

Featured Image: All rights reserved by Alex Hannam