West Ham United - Season Overview 2022-2023

★ = Dublin Hammers Meeting (Shown Live on television).
✈ = Dublin Hammers Trip.
LP = League Position.

PRE-SEASON NEWS 2022

Andre Yarmolenko leaves the club.
Mark Noble retires from football.
On-loan Goalkeeper Alphonse Areola joins the club on a 5 year deal.
Moroccan international defender Nayef Aguerd joins from Rennes.
Alex Kral leaves club at the end of season long loan deal.
Nathan Holland leaves to join Bourneouth AFC.
West Ham announce the signing of midfielder Flynn Downes from Swansea City on a five-year deal. Youngster Ajibola Alese leaves the club to join Sunderland on a permanent deal.
West Ham United announce the signing of Italy international centre-forward Gianluca Scamacca. The 23-year-old joins the Hammers on a five-year contract, with an option to extend for a further year, for an undisclosed fee from Serie A club Sassuolo.
West Ham United sign Ivory Coast international Maxwel Cornet from Burnley.

PRE-SEASON FRIENDLIES 2022

JULY 2021

08th Servette FC (a). 2-0. Alese, Mubama.
12th Ipswich Town (a). 2-1. Zouma, Chesters.
12th Boreham Wood (a). 1-1. Benrahma.
16th Reading (a). 1-1. Vlasic.
19th Rangers (a). 1-3. Soucek.
23rd Luton Town (a). 1-1. Soucek.
30th RC Lens (a). 0-0.

PREMIER LEAGUE/FA CUP/CARABAO CUP/EUROPA CONFERENCE LEAGUE 2022-2023

AUGUST 2022

The West Ham injury curse strikes again as new defender Nayef Aguerd is out until Christmas after coming off in our pre-season game at Rangers.

★ 07th Sun. Manchester City (h). 0-2.
A lacklustre performance to start the season played in 30 degree heat. In a game of few chances Haarland took both of City's. The only bright spark for the Hammers was the debut of new striker Scamacca who looked good when he came on.

After making himself unavailable for team selection, Issa Diop leaves West Ham to join Fulham.
Nikola Vlašić leaves to join Torino on a season long loan deal.

★ 14th Sun. Nottingham Forest (a). 0-1.
Joint bottom with Man. Utd! Not sure how we lost this game. Hit the bar twice, Rice had a penalty saved and a perfectly good goal disallowed for a foul by Antonio, when the replay showed it was he who was blocked off! One of those days.

With Ogbonna and Dawson yet to start the new season with injury, West Ham sign Germany international defender Thilo Kehrer from PSG on a 4 year deal.

★ 18th Thu. ECL Qualification - Viborg (Denmark) (h). 3-1. Scamacca, Bowen, Antonio.
A much needed win! A pedestrian first half was brought to life when Cornet crossed and Scamacca headed in. Fornals came on for Lanzini in the 2nd half and drove us forward. Bowen's precision shot put us 2-0 up. A rake of substitions unbalanced us and shortly after Viborg got one back. We restored the 2 goal lead when Benrahma drove into the box, got to the by-line and pulled the ball back for Antonio to side foot into the net. Not the best performance but it was good to see Ogbaonna back and proof that with the new signings we look to have some squad depth.

★ 21st Sun. Brighton Hove Albion (h). 0-2. LP: Bottom!
Three games, three defeats, no goals scored and bottom of the table! Not sure what is going on, but this was poor, very very poor. Moyes opted to leave new signings Scamacca and Cornet on the bench and played the same old stale line up bar Kehrer in the defence. It was him who gave the penalty away after Zouma's mistake. A brief response at the beginning of the 2nd half as Moyes made changes, but Potter counter acted these and it wasn't long before Brighton were 2 up. The best we could do was force the Brighton keeper into 2 late saves, but the reality was we were chasing them all game. We did see Scamacca and Antonio on at the same time, but instead of playing them both up front, Moyes chose to put Antonio out on the wing and then took him off 10 minutes later? Everything about us today second best especially the manager!

West Ham United is delighted to announce the signing of Italy international defender Emerson Palmieri from Chelsea.

★ 25th Thu. ECL Qualification - Viborg (Denmark) (a). 3-0. Scamacca, Benrahma, Soucek.
Qualification to the group stages of the Europa Conference League was assured with another much needed win! A first half goal for Scamacca and a nice finish from Benrahma just after half time finished plucky Viborg off. Inbetween Areola had to pull off a smart save to ensure we went into the break one up. Soucek got the third with a tap in.

★ 28th Sun. Aston Villa (a). 1-0. Fornals. LP:16th.
We are up and running! New boys Scamacca and Emerson started, but the first half attacking performance was poor, Keher and Zouma were solid at the back, but going forward we struggled to put 2 passes together. Moyes changed it at HT bringing Benrahma on for Emerson. It was like watching a different team. We started to attack with some purpose, quicker and the passing was much better. After a couple of half chances our goal came when Fornals shot got a slight deflection, enough to send it looping over the Villa keeper. Overall not great, but better and off the bottom of the table!

West Ham United announce the Club record signing of Brazil international Lucas Paquetá from Lyon.

★ 31st Wed. Tottenham (h). 1-1. Soucek. LP:14th.
A point against a good Spurs side (on paper anyway), and we should/could of won it at the end! The game came to life when we survived a penalty appeal which was overturned when VAR showed the ball had hit Cresswells head before his arm. Shortly after they took the lead after a ball accross the penalty area was turned into his own net by Keher. But after that we really went at them, so much so they resorted to the shit-housery and time wasting that has sadly crept into the game these days. We equalised after Antonios deft flick on in the area fell to Soucek who buried it with his 2nd touch. Paqueta came on to a rousing reception and the game came to a close with Spurs hanging on as we came very close to grabbing the winner on a couple of occasions.

The tranfer window closes.

Scamacca scores away at Viborg	Pablo Fornals winner at Villa!	Soucek equalises against Spurs

SEPTEMBER 2022

★ 03rd Sat. Chelsea (a). 1-2. Antonio. LP:18th.
Back into the bottom three after an appalling VAR decision to rule out Cornet's late equaliser. Disappointingly, Moyes set the team up to defend and the plan looked like it was going to work as Antonio put us into the lead in the 2nd half. However, after keeping them out for so long, they took the lead after poor defending for both goals. Cornet equalised in injury time, only for the goal to be overuled for a foul on the keeper. It wasn't a foul. It was injury simulation from Mendy. It was, as Moyes called it "A scandalous decision".

The PGMOL, the governing body of Premier League referees have conceded the VAR team in charge of West Ham's trip to Chelsea erred in ruling out Maxwel Cornet's injury-time equaliser... no shit! Fat lot of good that is, lets hope that point doesn't cost us come the end of the season.

Queen Elizabeth II dies hours before KO.

★ 08th Thu. ECL Group - SC Fotbal Club FCSB SA (Romania) (h). 3-1. Bowen (p), Emerson, Antonio.
Another poor first half performance as an unfit Scamacca missed some good chances and FCSB took a deserved lead. Moyes rang the changes at HT and the big guns came on. Fortunes changed when we were awarded a penalty which Bowen duly buried. Now with our 'tails up' we went at them and Antonio and Fornals caused them big problems. Emersion scored his first goal for the Hammers after some intense pressure. Antonio put the icing on the cake with a breakaway goal late on. On a sad day for the UK, with the rain pouring down, 'God Save the Queen' echoed around the London Stadium as the game came to a close.

10th Sun. Newcastle Utd (h). Postponed due to the death of the Queen.

★ 15th Thu. ECL Group - Silkeborg (Denmark) (a). 3-2. Lanzini (p), Scamacca, Dawson.
For the 2nd ECL game in a row we give the opposition a goal start... and, are on the right end of a dubious penalty decision. With no VAR in operation, the decision was not over turned and Lanzini equalised from the spot. That seemed to wake us up, Scamacca turned on the edge of the area and his snap shot flew into the top of the net! The ref ruled out a Silkeborg equaliser, shown on the replay to be a perfectly good goal. No VAR saves us again! Dawson put us further ahead from a corner. Moyes rang the changes, but instead of pushing on we sat back and it wasn't long before they scored. A nervous 10 minutes saw the game out. Top of the group after 2 games, but I think the result would have been very different had VAR been in use!

★ 18th Sun. Everton (a). 0-1.
Piss poor all round. Same old team selection, same old tactics, out fought, poor set piece delivery and couldn't pass the ball to each other. Benrahma unlucky when his curling shot hit the post when he came on in the 2nd half... and that was it! So we go into the international break firmly in the bottom three! 2 wins, 4 draws from the last 18 league games... relegation form. Questions starting to be asked about Moyes.

Bowen penalty at home to FCSB SA	Emerson scores at home to FCSB SA	Lanzini penalty away at Silkeborg

OCTOBER 2022

✈ 01st Sat. Wolves (h). 2-0. Scamacca, Bowen. LP:15th.
A much needed win for the first Dublin Hammers trip since before lock-down! We rode our luck early on as Wolves failed to finish their chances, but we held on grew into the game. Scamacca, starting instead of Antonio, gave us the lead with a stunning strike from outside the area after some good work by Bowen. Then in the second half, Bowen, looking much more like his old self, doubled our lead when he cut inside and finished with a smart shot. Three very welcome points, but Wolves are a poor side at the moment, if they had taken their chances, it could have been very different. The Wolves manager is sacked after the game.

★ 06th Thu. ECL Group - Anderlecht (Belgium) (a). 1-0. Scamacca.
A much changed line-up competed well in the first half in a close game. West Ham created the better of the chances, most of which fell to Benrahma who failed to put the ball into the net. Second half was a different story as we took control, Downes looking impressive. Even with our dominance we still failed to finish our chances and with 20 minutes to go on came Scamacca, Rice and Pacqueta. It wasn't long before Paqueta lifted the ball over the Anderlecht defence, Scamacca controled it with one touch and stuck the ball into the back of the net with his second. Aerola pulled off a world class save in the final minutes to ensure the win. 9pt from 3 games and top of the group!

★ 09th Sun. Fulham (h). 3-1. Bowen (p), Scamacca, Antonio. LP:13th.
A slow start from the Hammers saw Fulham take control, the lead and then hit they bar! Bowen equalised from the spot after Dawson was repeatedly blocked by the defender, who failed to make any attempt to play the ball, the ref issued a warning after the second time, awarded the pen after the third! Scamacca went close on 3 occasions as we pressed. Then in the second half Sacmacca lobbed the keeper to put us in the lead, but celebrations were muted until we had waited 3 minutes for VAR to decide it was a goal, after a possible offside/handball. Antonio came on for the last 20 minutes and scored the third after some 'comedy' defending from Fulham. For once, the decisions went for us today!

★ 13th Thu. ECL Group - Anderlecht (Belgium) (h). 2-1. Benrahma, Bowen.
Two cracking goals in the first half see West Ham qualify for the knock-out stages of the ECL. The first a free-kick from Benrahma, the second a pile-driver from Bowen! The ref awards Anderlecht a late 'soft' penalty to make a nervous few minutes at the end, but the reality was Anderlecht only had a couple of half chances. Worryingly Ogbonna and Dawson, both left the field injured, with Rice coming on to play in defence late on.

★ 16th Sun. Southampton (a). 1-1. Rice. LP:12th.
Dawson, Ogbonna and Zouma all out injured, but even with a make shift defence we dominated. Yet another slow start sees us go one down, we then went on to have 14 corners, 25 shots on goal, but disappointingly, only 4 on target! Scamacca and Pacqueta the main offenders. It fell to captain Declan Rice to curl in a wonderful equaliser. Should have won that by a country mile, but poor finishing our achiles heal!

Scamacca scores against Wolves	Team photo at Anderlecht	Antonio celebrates his goal against Fulham

★ 19th Wed. Liverpool (a). 0-1.
The now all too familiar slow start hands the initiative to Liverpool, whose 'out of form' striker proceeds to get his goal! Thereafter we weather some pressure before slowly growing into the game. Minutes before HT we are awarded a peno when Bowen is fouled. He steps up to deliver a weak shot which Alison saves. Another peno missed this season... one out of three scored is poor. We are the better team in the second half, but just cannot put a finish on several good moves. Disappointing!

★ 24th Mon. Bournemouth (h). 2-0. Zouma, Benrahma (p). LP:10th.
An awful match to watch, they were poor, resorting to stalling tactics anytime we threatened to build up a head of steam. We struggled to fashion a clear cut chance. A tale of two VAR decisions, both of which went in our favour. A Kehrer handball just before Zouma headed in was checked, but allowed, then late on we were awarded a penalty when the ball hit a defenders hand from a cross, didn't think it was a peno myself, but VAR did and Benrahma gleefully despatched the spot-kick. Up to 10th from 17th, very tight at the moment!

★ 27th Thu. ECL Group - Silkeborg (Denmark) (h). 1-0. Lanzini (p).
Direct qualification into the last 16, group winners confirmed and a comfortable win, although it did take a dodgy penalty decision to give us our goal. With over 25 shots on goal, we disappointingly only worked the Silkeborg keeper a couple of times. The inability to put the ball into the net that has plagued us this season continued! Nayef Aguerd makes his first team debut, returning from an injury picked up in pre-season, and looked promising.

★ 30th Sun. Manchester Utd (a). 0-1.
Just like Liverpool away... nearly, but not quite! Moyes sets us up with 3 holding midfielders, but a super cross from Erikkson and a powerful header from Rashford breaks the dead-lock. Now behind, aka liverpool, we start to play. For the last 20 minutes we battered them, but failed to finished any of our chances. De Gea making 2 world class saves to keep us out. Disappointing.

Benrahma scores against Bournemouth	Young striker Devin Mubama away at FCSB	Final whistle goes at home to Palace

NOVEMBER 2022

★ 03rd Thu. ECL Group - SC Fotbal Club FCSB SA (Romania) (a). 3-0. Fornals x2, OG.
A second string team with a sprinkling of youngsters made sure we finish the group stage in style.

★ 06th Sun. Crystal Palace (h). 1-2. Benrahma.
Dear oh dear, poor from start to finish! Second best all game. Benrahma scores a brilliant goal against the run of play, but we fail to build on it, instead we gift Zaha an equaliser. The players were not good enough, the tactics too negative. The crowd turn on Moyes as he subs Benrahma off. Then late into injury time, Antonio breaks free down the right, looks up, but instead of finding a West Ham player he passes the ball straight to the Palace keeper, who releases the ball quickly... they run down the other end the score the winner! Awful from all concerned, but Moyes now under serious pressure.

09th Wed. Blackburn Rovers (h). Carabao Cup 3rd Rd. 2-2. Fornals, Antonio.
We lose 10-9 on penalties to Blackburn's second team.

★ 12th Sat. Leicester City (h). 0-2.
Same old story from recent weeks... crap, crap crap! Thank goodness for the World Cup break.

WORLD CUP 2022 BREAK

DECEMBER 2022:

Pre-Season Resumption Friendlies.
06th Tues. Cambridge Utd (a). 4-2. Bowen, Benrahma, Ekwah, OG.
10th Sat. Udinese (a). 3-1. Benrahma, Lanzini, Antonio.
17th Sat. Fulham (a). 1-1. Bowen.

26th Mon. Arsenal (a). 1-3. Benrahma (p).
Took the lead after Bowen was fouled in the area and Benrahma despatched the resulting penalty. After that it was 'one way traffic' as Arsenal pushed for the equaliser. We somehow retained the lead until half time, but shortly after the restart Coufal played Saka on, he finished, then minutes later Fabinanski was beaten at his near post. They finished us off with a third before Fornals curling shot was saved in the final minutes. Normal service is resumed. Four league loses in a row!

★ 30th Fri. Brentford (h). 0-2.
Moyes makes a few changes to the starting line-up and for the first half we gave it a go, but without causing Brentford any real problems. Rice hitting the post was the best of it. Just before HT Brentford scored with their first attack of the game. Second half was a re-run of what we have been seeing this season, slow build-up, no creativity, non-stop passing back and forth accross the pitch until we give the ball away. Which is exactly what happened when Brentford broke and scored again. Five league loses in a row now, and with the end of the year round the corner, we have won just 5 league fixtures in 2022. Piss poor, even for West Ham standards, surely Moyes job is under serious pressure now.

JANUARY 2023

★ 04th Wed. Leeds Utd (a). 2-2. Pacqueta (p), Scamacca. LP:17th.
A hard fought draw, a better performance, but 1 point from 15 has put us firmly in a relegation battle. Paqueta scores his first West Ham goal from the penalty spot after a foul on Bowen to level the scores. Just after the restart a mistake by the Leeds defence sees the ball fall to Scamacca, whose shot goes in off the post. 'How shit must you be, we're winning away' sang the 3,000 travelling fans! Leeds ramped up the pressure and eventually scored the equaliser. Fabianski makes a stunning save in injury to ensure a point!

★ 07th Sat. Brentford (a). FA Cup 3rd Rd. 1-0. Benrahma.
Praise the gods! A win, albeit against a second string Brentford side. A dismal first half performance gave way to a slightly better second. Moyes opted to leave Benrahma on the bench for the 2nd week running, but with the fans continuely singing his name, Moyes brings him on midway thru the 2nd half. Minutes later a great tackle from Rice puts the ball thru to Benrahma on the edge of the area, one touch and his powerful swerving shot hits the back of the net! Moyes being Moyes, then makes 2 defensive substitutions, thus handing the initative to Brentford. We survive a flurry of half chances from Brentford but hold on to make it into the next round.

Scamacca injured and out for 4 weeks!

★ 14th Sat. Wolves (a). 0-1. LP: Joint bottom!
The faint glimmer of hope is firmly extingished as Moyes opts to leave Benrahma and Scamacca on the bench and sets us up to defend... again. So we hand the initiative to Wolves, who grow in statue as the game progresses. They score, sit back, we have loads of possession, but struggle to break them down. Rinse and repeat. Moyes Out!

West Ham sign striker Danny Ings from Aston Villa for £15 million.

★ 21st Sat. Everton (h). 2-0. Bowen x2. LP:15th
This game was dubbed the 'El Sackio' as both Lampard and Moyes are under extreme pressure. With both sides showing why they are joint bottom of the league, it was a game of poor quality, nervousness and playing safe. Two moments of rare quality from West Ham won it. Bowen pouncing onto a cross into the area to toe poke the ball home for the first, and again Bowen running onto a great cross from Antonio to finish high into the net. That was it really, two up and we reverted to sitting back and playing on the break. Everton came close a couple of times but could not finish, the reality is that Everton are a really poor team and against better opposition we would have conceded. Still 3 points is 3 points and we move up to 15th.

Danny Ings injured after playing 20 minutes! Zouma, back against Everton is out injured again!
Goalkeeper Darran Randolph joins AFC Bournmouth.
Conor Coventry joins Rotherham Utd on loan.

★ 30th Mon. Derby County (a). FA Cup 4th Rd. 2-0. Bowen, Antonio.
This one had all the hallmarks of a classic West Ham cup exit, but Moyes puts out a strong side and we get the job done with very little stress. A goal each half from Bowen and Antonio see us cruise to a surprising easy win. 4,500 travelling supporters sang the West Ham songbook in the second half, coming accross loud and clear on TV. "Stamford Bridge is falling down" and "Big Fat Frank" were the highlights. Two wins in a row, lets see what the next three fixtures bring?

The transfer window closes. Craig Dawson complates his move to Wolves. Ashby and Longelo join Ekwah as our youngsters queue up to leave the club, all singing the same song... 'no way into the first team under Moyes'... well done David, the Academy of Football my arse!

Pacqueta's penalty at Leeds	Bowen scores his 2nd, Everton at home	Emerson equalises at home to Chelsea

FEBRUARY 2023

★ 04th Sat. Newcastle Utd (a). 1-1. Paquetá.
A disastrous first 90 seconds saw us concede twice! After the first had been disallowed by VAR, literally seconds later Wilson burst through and put them one up... 'here we go' we thought, but not the case, we rallied and equalised and were the better side for the rest of the half. Newcastle piled on the pressure in the second, but we withstood it. Shame we didn't go for it, but predictably Moyes took off 2 attacking players and replaced them with more defensive players with 20 minutes to go, that only drew them on further as we sat back and only a great tackle from Nayef Aguerd saved the point when Wilson burst through again late on.

★ 11th Sat. Chelsea (h). 1-1. Emerson. LP:16th.
Yet another disastrous start, we concede 3 goals in the first 20 minutes as we let Chelsea stroll into the London Stadium and take the piss. Thankfully 2 of these were ruled off by VAR. And as is the 'norm' lately, it takes us going behind before we start to play. Once we start to have a go at them it wasn't long before Bowen heads on a cross, for Emerson to steal in at the far post and equalise. In the 2nd half we revert to 8 at the back and rely on breakaways. A late spell of set-pieces see us score, but VAR rules it out. Chelsea should of had a pen in the closing minutes. We also lose Paqueta and Aguerd to injury.

★ 19th Sun. Tottenham (a). 0-2. LP:18th.
The line-up reveals Moyes has selected just two attacking players. So its the usual defend, defend, defend... pray we nick a goal from a break-away or set-piece tactic, only this week, its 9 defensive players instead of 8! And as usual... it didn't work! Our best moment came in the 2nd minute with Bowens shot going narrowly wide... in the 2nd half Spurs came at us, we retreated further and further back, they scored, Moyes delayed making any kind of response for 10 minutes... they scored again... negative and lacking any kind of enterprise... truely shocking and back in the bottom three!

★ 25th Sat. Nottingham Forest (h). 4-0. Ings x2, Rice, Antonio.
At last Moyes makes changes, Danny Ings starts up front and Pacqueta returns from injury. West ham were the better team in the first half, but it was in the second half that they finally got a break through. A crazy 20 minutes started when Fabba went off injured and Aerola came on, minutes later Bowens shot cannoned off the inside off the post and back out again. Then it was Bowen again who broke down the right, crossed and Danny Ings got on the end of it to open his account! Minutes later, this time down the left, a cross came in and there he was again to bundle the ball into the back of the net. At this stage, with confidence flowing, West Ham looked a completely different team and really went at Forest. The pick of the goals came when Benrahma laid the ball back to Rice, who curled his shot into the top corner from the edge of the box! Moyes made changes, and two of those subs combined to score the 4th. Fornals beat his man and lifted a lovely cross to the back post, leaving Antonio the simple task of heading into the net. We are by no means out of the relegation mire, but at least today we could forget and just enjoy West Ham scoring 4 goals... it's been awhile!

Ings scores his 1st against Forest at home	Rice gets the 3rd, Forest at home	Celebrations, AEK Larnaca away

MARCH 2023

★ 01st. Wed. Manchester Utd (a). FA Cup 5th Rd. 1-2. Benrahma.
Moyes names a strong team and after a slow start from both teams West Ham survive a flurry of chances before starting to take control. They carve out scoring opportunities, all of which are wasted, Antonio being the main culprit! However, we take the lead when Benrahma curls a lovely shot in from the edge of the area. Ten Hag responds by bringing on all the big guns. They pile on the pressure, we drop further and further back, they equalise and then with extra time on the horizon they score the winner.

★ 04th Sat. Brighton Hove Albion (a). 0-4.
A horror show! Pathetic, gutless... 2nd half at Tottenham all over again, only this time for the entire match! Moyes negative tactics have drained any confidence from the players, they look broken, devoid of a reason to compete... The West ham crowd for the first time round on Moyes with chants of "You're getting sacked in the morning" and "you don't know what your doing". The MOTD commentator quotes "a performance that has relegation written all over it!" Moyes after match comments are laughable... "They were tired after the Man. Utd. game, I told them to let Brighton have the ball". The club is in turmoil... The board issue a statement backing Moyes...

★ 09th Thu. ECL AEK Larnaca (Cyprus) (a) 2-0. Antonio x2.
A dull... yawn... first 35 minutes sprang to life when Benrahma's cross was headed in by Antonio. Minutes later Antonio found himself in space on the edge of the area and curled a lovely shot into the top corner of the net. At the start of the 2nd half, Antonio was thru on goal only to see his shot hit the inside of the post and rebound out. After that we sat back... yawn... we did have one further attack, Pacqueta was put thru but shot straight at the keeper... but then went back to 'keeping it tight'. On paper a good result, but for those unlucky enough to be watching it was 10 minutes of football, the rest was awful!

★ 12th Sun. Aston Villa (h). 1-1. Benrahma (p).
I guess a point is better that nothing, but with the other teams around us at the bottom all picking up points, it was a wasted opportinity. We played well without being able to finish our chances, Bowen and Benrahma the pick of the players. But on Villa's first break they scored. Benrahma equalises with a penalty after a dodgy dive from Pacqueta, never a pen, a gift. We had a spell of pressure at the beginning of the 2nd half, but again failed to take our chances. We ran out of ideas, Moyes subs were uninspiring. Back in the bottom three!

★ 16th Thu. ECL AEK Larnaca (Cyprus) (h). 4-0. Bowen x2, Scamacca, Mubama.
4 goals, job done, and a nice break from our dull league form, but lets not kid ourselves, AEL Larnaca were not great. Moyes starts Scamacca along with wholesale changes. As in the first leg, the first half hour was alot of huffing and puffing, misplaced passes, slow build ups, but eventually we applied enough pressure and Scamacca opens the scoring. We started the 2nd half with alot more tempo and it wasn't long before Bowen had put us 3-0 up with 2 goals in 3 minutes, the second a great header from Cresswells cross. Moyes made changes, Scamacca came off, but at least he put some youngsters on. Potts in midfield looked very assured, and up front Mubama looked a good replacement for Antonio, whether Moyes will choose to use him is another matter? Mubama finished things off nicely with a goal on his home debut. On to the quarter-finals.

Scamacca undergoes a knee operation and is out for the rest of the season!

Bowen opens the scoring, Larnaca at home	Newcastle inflict a heavy home defeat	A much needed win at Fulham

APRIL 2023

★ 02nd Sun. Southampton (h). 1-0. Aguerd.
A much needed win in this relegation six pointer. A Moyes 'wet dream' of a game unfolded as we 'kept it tight' then 'scored from a set peice' only to go on and 'defend the game out'. The goal aside, the only other highlight came when Bowen hit the bar, inbetween it went like this... sideways pass, sideways pass, back pass, sideways pass, back pass, kick it long, lose the ball... rinse and repeat! Could have all gone wrong when Southampton hit the bar themselves in the closing minutes. Three points, out of the bottom three... but utter dross!

★ 05th Wed. Newcastle Utd (h). 1-5. Zouma.
We started brightly, hit the post in the opening minutes, 15 minutes later we were 2 down! Kehrer giving away a needless corner which Wilson scored from, followed by a pass clean through our midfield and the defence, they scored unopposed. We rallied, the crowd rallied and Zouma got one back from a set-piece. At HT the game was in the balance... 2 minutes into the 2nd half a mistake from Aguerd gifted them another goal. Game over. Moyes had no answer, the usual like-for-like subs in a system that wasn't working. By the time the fourth went in the crowd were drifting away, the fifth in the final minutes. A game punctuated by individual errors and a new low, how Moyes still has a job is a complete mystery.

★ 08th Sat. Fulham (a). 1-0. OG.
More of the same old negative tactics, but a solid defensive performance at least. Moyes ditches all the new signings except Ings and reverts to the line-up from 2 seasons ago. 180 million spent and we are back to that! The goal, Bowen beat his man and crossed the ball in, only for the Fulham defender to pass the ball into his own net! After that we just defended, they couldn't score. Cornet had a one-on-one with the keeper late on but shot straight at the keeper. Three much needed points but yet another dull watch.

★ 13th Thu. ECL Quarter-final - KAA Gent (Belgium) (a). 1-1.Ings.
Hoping for a bit of respite for the Euro game? No such luck. We started brightly but as the game wore on they took control as we sat back. With minutes to go before HT we scored against the run of play, a tap in from Ings after Bowen had beaten his man and crossed. Second half was a non event as we struggled to retain any kind of possession. They deservedly equalised and put us under increasing pressure. We have been living a 'charmed life' in this competition and it continued as Gent made chance after chance but could not get the winner. A draw not a bad result considering, but over-all... a piss-poor performance... again! Ref was shite too!

★ 15th Sun. Arsenal (h). 2-2. Benrahma (p), Bowen.
Well didn't see that one coming! Two nil down after 10 minutes, it wasn't looking good, but then West Ham seemed to find some spirit and started to compete, seeing the players having a go back, the crowd got behind the team and just before HT Paqueta was brought down in the area and Benrahma despatched the resulting penalty! We continued to press after HT and got our reward when Bowen volleyed in the equaliser. Arsenal tried but failed to make any clear cut chances, and the game came to an end with 'come on you irons' echoing around the London Stadium. Rice, Antonio and Coufal were the pick of the West Ham players. Lets hope we can continue playing with the passion and belief that we showed today. A much needed injection of positivity!

★ 20th Thu. ECL Quarter-final - KAA Gent (Belgium) (h). 4-1. Antonio x2, Pacqueta (p), Rice.
Into a European semi-final for the 2nd year in a row and in the end with some style too! We started brightly but then allowed Gent to come into the game. They took the lead after Pacqueta lost the ball in midfield, Emerson failed to track the runner and the ball bobbled into the net from a weak shot! That woke us up again and Antonio equalised from a Bowen free-kick just before HT. The question was, would that come out asleep as in so many games this season? The answer… No, we absolutely blitzed them, in one sustained spell of pressure we hit the woodwork twice and it started to look like it wasn’t going to happen. But then came a spell of 8 minutes when the tie was put to bed. We were awarded a penalty which Pacqueta despatched into the top corner after a stuttering run-up. Then Rice picked the ball up in our half, ran the length of the field, sold the Gent defenders a dummy before slotting the ball into the net… what a goal! Not to be outdone, Antonio rifled in number 4 into the top corner from just inside the area. The last 20 minutes of the game was a non-eventwith numerous subs being made.

Antonio scores against KAA Gent	Rice's wonder goal, KAA Gent	Fornals celebrates his goal at Bournemouth

★ 23rd Sun. Bournemouth (a). 4-0. Antonio, Pacqueta, Rice, Fornals. LP:13th.
The positiveity and levels of performance continue as we wipe the floor with relegation rivals Bournemouth! Early goals from Antonio and Pacqueta, both headers set the tone, with Rice making it three just before HT. Bournemouth huffed and puffed but couldn't break down the Hammers defence. Moyes made a rake of changes half way into the 2nd half. It was Pablo Fornals who put the 'icing on the cake', scoring with a scorpion kick, another of the subs, Maxwell Cornet added a fifth, but it was ruled out for offside. This has been a frustrating season, but this week... maybe, just maybe, we have turned a corner!

★ 26th Wed. Liverpool (h). 1-2. Pacqueta.
On the back foot for most of the game, but when we did break, we played some good football and took the lead after a one-two on the edge of the area which saw Pacqueta drive an unstopppable shot into the net! What a goal! They equalised before HT. 10 minutes into the 2nd half we started to look tired, 3 games in 6 days taking it's toll and we droped further and further back. On one of our few attacks, Bowen put the ball into the net only for VAR to rule offside. They scored the winner from a corner. In the final minutes the ball hit a Liverpool hand in the area, was it a penalty? No according to the ref. We got away with a very similar incident against Chelsea, so no complaints, however the fact that it wasn't even looked at by VAR tells you all you need to know about the bias of the premier league. Good performance, just didn't have enough 'in the tank' to keep it up for 90 minutes.

★ 29th Sat. Crystal Palace (a). 3-4. Soucek, Antonio, Aguerd.
4 games in 11 days... Moyes flogs plays the same players, making just 2 changes for Palace and boy did it show. We looked knackered. The scoreline does not tell the whole story, truth is Palace battered us, we were 2nd best all game and couldn't put 2 passes together, conceding possession again and again. Our goals came from set-pieces, our only threat. Disappointing and puts us back into the relegation mix. It's hard to fathom why Moyes has not used our squad to rotate. He did the same last season, but you could argue we didn't have a squad then. After spending 180 million he does now. It seems he has not learned his lesson, and is making the same mistakes again!

Zouma limps off and reports say he is out for the rest of the season!

MAY 2023

★ 3rd Wed. Manchester City (a). 0-3.
No surprises with this one. A much depleted West Ham team defended well and caused City the odd problem in the first half, but conceded early in the second and from then on it was over really, damage limitation. 20% possesion to City's 80%, tells the story. The plus side was that a few first choice players managed to get a much needed rest, 'bug in the camp' was the official story. The downside... Coufal went off with what looked like a hamstring injury.

★ 07th Sun. Manchester Utd (h). 1-0. Benrahma.
A howler from DeGea as he fumbles Benrahma's bobbling shot, the only goal of the game. An outstanding performance all round with Rice showing his class.

Zouma is back!

Benrahma scores at home to Man Utd	Team photo AZ Alkmaar at home	Antonio gets the winner, AZ Alkmaar at home

★ 11th Thu. ECL Semi-final - AZ Alkmaar (Holland) (h). 2-1. Benrahma (p), Antonio.
A packed London Stadium roared the Hammers on, but it was mediocre first half performance. We sat back and let have the ball while keeping them at arms length, however, they took the lead with a long shot which the keeper should of had covered. We were much better in the 2nd half and got our rewards when Bowen was taken out in the area, Benrahma cooly dispatched the resulting peno! We pressed again and Antonio finished from a goal mouth scramble. We came close a couple of times after that but couldn't add a third. So we take a slender lead into the second leg...

★ 14th Sun. Brentford (a). 0-2.
Moyes puts out a second string side and as usual we lose to Brentford with a non-descript performance. Only plus point being Moyes giving young striker Mubama half an hours playing time. He did well and should of had a goal, but VAR rules it out for a handball... which it wasn't? Another poor, poor VAR decision.

★ 18th Thu. ECL Semi-final - AZ Alkmaar (Holland) (a). 1-0. Fornals.
Well it was not pretty, but West Ham are into the ECL Final! Moyes set us up to defend and that's what we did. Alkmaar tried and tried but struggled to break us down and on the odd occasion they did could not finish. In fact the best save Aerola had to male was from his own defender! Pacqueta hit the post in the first half, we sat even further back in the second. With nerves jangling during extra time we broke, Fornals ran the from the half way line, beat the defender before putting the ball into the back of the net and sending everyone into relieved ecstasy!

Team photo AZ Alkmaar away	Fornals runs thru and shoots...	A goal in the final minutes...
Celebrations with the travelling fans	Noble at the final whistle	Pacqueta turns the Leeds defence at home

✈ 21st Sun. Leeds Utd (h). 3-1. Rice, Bowen, Lanzini.
Moyes makes a few changes and Fornals starts after his heroics in Europe. As usual we started slowly and before long Leeds scored. And again, as usual, once we went a goal down, we started to play some football. Rice equalised before half time. Then in the second we battered them, Rice, Pacqueta and MOTM Fornals orchestrating some lovely moves. Goals from Bowen and Lanzini put relegation bound Leeds to the sword! Seems we are getting some form at the right time... and about time too!

★ 28th Leicester City (a). 1-2. Fornals.
Not much to play for, so Moyes rests players before the big final. Leicester needed to win and Everton to lose to stay up, in the end the win was not enough and they are relegated! West Ham were sluggish throughout and were two nil down before mounting any kind of a come back. Fornals pulled one back, we had some pressure at the end of the game, but overall it was a 'treading water' game for us which we navigated without picking up any injuries... all eyes on the 7th June now. COYIs!

JUNE 2023

★ 7th Wed. ECL Final - Fiorentina (Italy) - Eden Arena, Prague. 2-1. Benrahma (p), Bowen.
A cagey first half, with Fiorentina playing most of the football with West Ham countering on the break. Overall they didn’t really trouble us and seemed to spend most of the time trying to cheat at every opportunity. The play acting became so frustrating that after one pathetic dive right in front of the West Ham fans, emotions ran high and the Fiorentina players were showered with plastic cups of beer. A vape was also thrown which struck the head of one of the players causing some bleeding. The West Ham players went over to the fans and asked for calm. The throwing of beer stopped, sadly the cheating from Fiorentina didn’t! Thankfully things picked up in the second half. Bowen ran onto a ball in the Fiorentina area and while the ball was in the air a Fiorentina players hand came forward and pushed the ball away, I don’t think it was intentional, but it was ‘hand to ball’. The West Ham players appealed, but the game continued for 30 seconds or so before the ref stopped the game, VAR reviewed, and then the Ref went over to the monitor, after viewing the incident a number of times his arm went out and the penalty was awarded. Benrahma grabbed the ball instantly and placed it on the spot. He refused to look at the keeper who was trying to put him off… the ref blew… up he stepped and ball hit the back of the net. One nil up! Come on West Ham, could we start to believe? In classic West Ham fashion, minutes later Fiorentina ran down the other end and scored! The goal seemed to ‘knock the stuffing’ out of West Ham and Fiorentina attacked relentlessly, and they should have scored again after carving us open, but thankfully the final shot went wide of the post. That woke us up and we had a couple of half chances, both missed and both offside. Then in the 90th minute the ball fell to Paqueta in midfield, he turned a played a delightful ball into the space behind the Fiorentina defence. Bowen was onto it, with two defenders chasing and the keeper rushing out, we held our breath… he shot early, the ball brushed the keeper… and hit the back of the net. If you are going to score a winner, do it in the 90th minute, but this is West Ham and their was 5 minutes extra time to be played, 5 minutes became 8, you couldn’t hear the final whistle, but suddenly all the West Ham players arms went up into the air and they raced toward the West Ham supporters at the other end of the ground. We had done it… West Ham United - Europa Conference 2023 - Winners!

Damage from a thrown vape	Benrahma buries the penalty...	...and celebrates
Bowen is put through on goal...	...and scores!	ECL 2023 Winners!
The captain lifts the cup	The team celebrate with the fans	Open top bus parade in East London
Open top bus photo	Celebrations continue in Stratford	Mark Noble enjoys the winners parade

WEST HAM GOALSCORERS - 2023-2023

Name	PL	CC	FA	ECL	TL
Nayef Aguerd	2	-	-	-	2
Michail Antonio	5	1	1	7	14
Said Benrahma	6	-	2	4	12
Jerrod Bowen	6	-	1	6	13
Craig Dawson	-	-	-	1	1
Pablo Fornals	3	1	-	3	6
Danny Ings	2	-	-	1	3
Manuel Lanzini	1	-	-	2	3
Devin Mubama	-	-	-	1	1
Lucas Paquetá	4	-	-	1	5
Emerson Palmieri	1	-	-	1	2
Declan Rice	4	-	-	1	5
Gianluca Scamacca	3	-	-	5	8
Tomas Soucek	2	-	-	1	3
Kurt Zouma	2	-	-	-	2
Own Goals	1	-	-	1	2
Totals	42	2	4	35	83

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