The Gunners thrash a disjointed Hammers at The London Stadium …. Again!
Hope everyone is safe and well.
I have been working on a joint project with leisure services to support adults with learning disabilities to take part in a range of activities to help improve health and wellbeing within the community.
It’s taken quite some time to get where we are, which is to tie down the specifications that sets out the time frame, work program and targets of the project before funding can be finally agreed and someone employed to take up the role to make it all happen.
It is, without doubt, and ambitious but exciting project that will give adults with learning disabilities the opportunity to enjoy a range of activities from karate to aromatherapy, chair based exercise to gardening, accessible gym sessions and sports games to mindfulness, dance and movement in a friendly and supportive environment within local authority leisure centres.
The problem is everything takes so long when you are working with the local authority, it’s as if they have their own time frames to do anything, like having a clock that works at a different pace to everyone else.
The other issue is communication, or lack of it, where a commissioner seems to think they know what is best and gets on and does something – such as drawing up the project specification and making huge changes to the project – without liaising with us, despite the fact we have done many of these projects before and recently completed a very successful summer roadshow as a pilot to what we are proposing. Don’t ask the expert, just crack on even when you don’t really know what you are doing!
We are confident the project will start, but its birth has not been without complications, none of which are our making but come from people who are more interested in budget spreadsheets, than commissioning a project that could have so much potential to positively impact some of the most vulnerable people within our community.
Sounds a bit familiar when we turn our attention to West Ham Utd and not just how the club is run, but how team recruitment was done so that we have a manager trying to gel a team with players he did not select to work a system they don’t agree with …. Or so it seems and depends on where you get your Hammer info from. J Lo’s position is now under serious threat after yet another thrashing this week at the hands of struggling Leicester City, under their new manager Ruud van Nistelrooy.
This was a game I was really looking forward to after Monday nights incredible performance against Newcastle Utd to secure a 2-0 victory at St James’ Park. Surely, after that we would compete with Arsenal and avoid another thrashing at home? Er …..
Well, what can we say? A first half performance that seemed like to halves where we were literally all over the place, lacking communication and cohesion with a midfield that conceded space and a defence that made it too easy for Arsenal to score 3 goals in 30mins! No wonder fans were getting up from their seats and going to an early half time drink.
I decided to arrive early for this match to meet the wonderful John Ratomski from Irons Supporting Foodbanks to talk about the current situation regarding the clubs position on the removal of concessionary rates for younger and older fans. Andy Payne was on the megaphone explaining to fans making their way to the game why it is important to sign the petition and support the efforts of Hammers United to get the club to review their ticket pricing policy otherwise the club will see both young and old fans alike struggling to afford to come to matches at the London Stadium. Read more about the campaign here
John also updated me about the amazing work being done to support food banks in Newham and across London to help those in need and the support they have received from the club. You read more about this here
I was able to walk around the ground from a different side than normal and captured the last of the sunlight through a clouded sky as I went back to my usual entrance to wait for my youngest boy to come with my wife via the Greenway.
The light was fading fast and my little Canon 800D always struggles with low light during the night games. Fortunately Lightroom Classic has a powerful AI feature that helps to bring the images up a bit.
Once I’d met with my brother, we grabbed a coffee and made our way to the stands and the light show brought back fond memories of European football under the lights, which seems such a long time ago now. It really raises the hair on the back of your neck with the music pumping out around the stands as the screens show scenes from past matches and the pyrotechnics dramatically light up the stadium.
The crowd were up for it and the chants and singing of Bubbles echoed throughout the smoke filled stadium as the players huddled before the start of the match as one or two black balloons floated above raised hands and scarfs.
The returning Declan Rice received a more positive than negative reception, with quite a few fans standing to clap near where I sit as he took his first of many corner kicks whilst the Gunners pressed for their early goals in the first half.
And then it starts, a total collapse that felt like a punch in the gut after the team’s performance against the Toons on Monday night. What on earth?
We had switched off defensively as Saka floated a ball into the box from his corner for Gabriel to escape his marker and head home on 10mins. The fans were straight up and shouting criticism of how easy we made it for the Gunners to score.
Crysencio Summerville did brilliantly to seemingly equalise on 17mins with a wonderful chip to place the ball beyond David Raya into the visitors net, but the flag went up for offside.
The smoke from the pre match show and the rather misty late November cold air combined with the glow from the overhead lights created a foggy atmosphere inside the stadium. Winter has definitely arrived, made all the more cold with the performance on the pitch.
Saka provided a telling cross for Leandro Trossard to easily steer the squared ball into the net beyond a leaping Lukas Fabianksi to double the lead. It was clearly not going to be our night and felt very similar to the 6-0 thrashing we suffered at home last season. The atmosphere was turning decided chilly.
Then we have 6 crazy minutes with 4 goals going in, 2 at each end, that made it feel like a game of FIFA on the Playstation!
Martin Odegaard scores from the penalty spot after a clumsy challenge from Lucas Paqueta as he tripped Saka in the area. 3-0 Was there was a bet on Paq getting a yellow card so early on in the match?
Then, Max Kilman makes a school boy error and misses a long ball allowing Kai Havertz to beat Fabianski one on one and slot the ball into the open net. 4-0. Where has the fight gone that was evident on Monday? Then we battled for every ball – here we were giving it away!
Aaron Wan-Bissaka scores his second goal for the club with an excellent shot that beats Raya at the near post. The crowd go wild and there seems a glimmer of hope as I shouted out ’Come on you Irons, we can win this 5-4!’ If only it was a game on FIFA!
Well actually, crazier things have happened with come backs, but this was a rare light of joy in a match that had everything in the first half. We could have all just gone home at the half time whistle and not missed anything.
A free kick just outside the visitors penalty area and up steps Emerson to take the free kick and send the ball beyond the diving Raya into the top corner.
The crowd quite rightly go wild and celebrate what could be a most unlikely comeback. Both these goals showed the potential within the team, but why are we struggling to show more of this in other games? Is it the way the manager sets the team up to play? Something is holding this team back because on paper we have some much potential.
Tensions get the better of players on both sides, brought to a head by the Gunners’ endless time wasting and play acting when a particularly menacing blade of grass catches them and the frustrations from the home side as they are being systematically taken apart again.
There was actually still some atmosphere inside the stadium, despite some fans leaving their seats early, and the scoreline after only 36mins. For the neutral, this must have been a very entertaining game to watch. I had a few images of the stands but this shot seemed to capture some of the atmosphere during the first half.
Then the final blow, a sucker punch as it were, when Fabianski misses a punch for the ball from a corner and accidentally punched Gabriel instead. The ref rewards Fab with a yellow card.
Up steps Saka to thump the ball passed the diving Fabanski. 5-2 to the Gunners. At this rate we could be down 10-2 by the final whistle! I took quite a lot of photos of all the goals, but selected only a few images and it seems to work well.
An isolated Fabianski leans forward on his thighs watching the game just inside the Hammers own half. What on earth must he be thinking? Photos like this can really tell a story and it just seemed a great shot to have Fab isolated like this with the weight of the gaols conceded on is shoulders.
We did actually manage to have some shots on target, which is surprising given how over run we were for large parts of the first half.
Half time could not have come any sooner and a change to catch our breath as we try to soak up what on earth had just happened on the pitch? Lopetegui, sitting in the stands to serve his one match pitch side ban, must have been holding his head in despair at this performance.
The teams return to the pitch for the second and we are told about the penalty decision against Fabianski for his punch to Gabriel at the end of the first half.
The second half played out as I thought the game as a whole would play out after Monday’s performance. Arsenal had definitely taken their foot off the pedal as we continued to find composure in front of goal and failed to get a hold on possession. The Arsenal players continued with their time wasting, pulling the ref’s shorts down time and again as they were allowed to stop any rhythm to the match, and home fans were quite rightly getting frustrated at yet another Arsenal player lying on the grass.
A shout out for Wan-Bissaka, who I thought was out best player during the match. He used his pace to go forward, tracked back for defensive duties and was in the box for his goal and clearly wanted to get involved throughout the game. Definitely a player to watch for us as he is growing into his role and offering us some well needed pace and desire.
It was great to see Irving later on in the game as one of the substitutes used to try and get us something from this match.
And Danny Ings showed some quality when he came on, sending an excellent opportunity to score just wide of his far post, when a tap into the near post would have been a better option. Pretty typical of how things have been going for the Hammers this season so far.
The match ends, and not a moment too soon as the pain of yet another crushing defeat to the Gunners sinks in for those fans left in the stands.
We take our leave finally, heading down the stairs towards the exit and into the dark cold night. It really felt like a punch in the face and it’s clear there are issues within the team that go beyond the manager. Whatever happens to JLo this week after Monday nights shocking defeat to Leicester City, it’s clear defensively we are not up to scratch and the midfield is like using a sieve to stop water flowing down the river.
Story has it the owners are considering their options regarding the manager and potential replacements. It doesn’t matter who we as fans think ought to replace J-Lo as Sullivan has his strict criteria that he will not veer away from. And there in lays the real reason why we are in the mess we are in now.
The cold air hits as we walk around the stadium and I look around for some shots. I am able to get something of the shots I take in the very low light through editing in Lightroom Classic, so I keep clicking away in case there is anything worth working up. These two shots were the pick with a young fan balancing on her sister’s knee for a photo, and the two young fans chasing a ball in the light from the big screen at the front of the ground.
A fan wonders by himself with some food, probably wondering why he came to the match and it’s a kind of body depiction of what it can feel like as Hammer’s fan.
As me and my youngest boy head around the concourse towards steps that take us away from the stadium, I grab a few shots of fans queuing for food. I love trying to capture the light and contrast in these kind of shots, and there is usually something to catch the eye – the boy kicking his ball whilst balancing his food in his right hand.
Apologies for the delay in posting this up as the games come thick and fast. I’ve been rather pre-occupied with the project and have felt under the weather – hopefully I can get any colds, aches and pains out of the way before Christmas as we have plans to go away.
Thank you for reading my article everyone.
Take care
Dawud
From the Stands 