West Ham star Michail Antonio has sent a clear message to David Moyes about his tactics in the wake of the 2-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen.
It is an achievement for West Ham to have made the quarter-finals of the Europa League. There would certainly be no shame in the Hammers being knocked out by invincible German champions-elect Bayer Leverkusen. But the last thing you want as a West Ham player, manager or fan is to go out with regrets. West Ham supporters want to feel like they at least went down swinging. And it seems the players do too.
No case for the defence in second leg
In football, hindsight is a great thing.
Many would have praised David Moyes for a tactical masterclass if West Ham had managed to hold on for a few more minutes against Bayer Leverkusen.
However, the manager’s overly cautious approach at the BayArena ultimately led to a 2-0 loss, leaving West Ham with a mountain to climb.
West Ham suffered as a result of Moyes’ disregard for a Bayer Leverkusen tip from a specialist.
The manager made the decision to counterattack against a squad that has only allowed one goal all season long using that same strategy.
For the second leg at London Stadium, it has put the Hammers in a difficult situation.
However, one West Ham player revealed to the manager exactly what the
Antonio sends clear message to Moyes about his tactics
According to the striker, the strategy needs to be completely different from the first leg.
Antonio stated on the team’s official website, “We knew they were a good team before the game, and they showed that tonight.”
“You can see they have so much belief in how they play, even though it was tough out there.”
We must accept the situation as it is and fight back when we return home the following week. We cannot, however, become too depressed.
“We have room for improvement after this first leg, as we were able to generate a few good counterattack opportunities and have a chance to rally.”
“We must take it on, and hopefully we can succeed for the fans.”
Hammers have looked much better playing on the front foot
Moyes has witnessed firsthand how much superior his team can be when they truly “go for it.”
Although his strategies in the first leg did not sit well with everyone, they made sense.
In the second leg, West Ham might as well give it their all and not look back.
That is preferable to being a realist and wondering what could have been.
Leverkusen has demonstrated recently that they are vulnerable defensively against teams like Freiburg and Qarabag. In the two matches against Xabi Alonso’s team, Qarabag scored twice. Additionally, Freiburg scored two goals against them.
West Ham can re-enter the tie if they can accomplish the same.
And who knows what might occur if the Hammers manage to rally and force further time.
