West Ham have finally managed to string a run of results together, with many claiming to witness the green shoots of recovery.
As any keen gardener will know, early green shoots can easily be killed off in their infancy by a nasty frost, and I think West Ham’s improvement remains fragile.
It’s a measure of how poor the Hammers’ early results were that two wins and two draws back-to-back have only moved the club up one place in the Premier League.
That being said, nobody can complain about wins against teams West Ham were expected to beat, alongside picking up points against sides who were supposed to beat us.
Julen Lopetegui will rightfully feel pleased about the club’s mini-resurgence, and no doubt the West Ham board will feel vindicated in retaining the head coach.
Lopetegui himself has done a remarkable job, given he had to travel back to Spain to bury his father this month. Not only has he managed to navigate a difficult personal situation, but he also appears to have patched up his differences with Alphonse Areola and Jean-Clair Todibo.
Undefeated in four
Finally, The Hammers can begin looking upwards in the league rather than nervously below, where we currently enjoy a nice buffer zone. But many of the original problems remain.
Without wishing to pour too much cold water on the Christmas turkey, West Ham’s problems in midfield persist. Unless reinforcements are brought in next month, the same issues will continue. While it was good to beat Southampton yesterday, they are comfortably the worst team in the Premier League. Nonetheless, they had several good opportunities against the Hammers’ defence, which any team with a cutting edge would have converted.
Defensive, midfield, and attacking issues remain and must be addressed. As I mentioned yesterday, Lopetegui is very safe in his job and is already in discussions with the club over January transfers.
A few tweaks could see The Iron’s fragile renaissance improve, but the club’s recent record and recruitment strategy make that uncertain.
West Ham face Liverpool, Manchester City, and Fulham in our next three matches. If we can get four points from those tricky fixtures, I’ll start to have a bit more confidence.
