Just a couple of months on from West Ham United’s Europa Conference League triumph, tension abounded at the London Stadium. Going into the 2023/24 season, it was an open secret that David Moyes did not see eye to eye with Tim Steidten, the club’s new technical director.
Their creative differences centred on recruitment - namely what to do with the £105m windfall from the sale of Declan Rice to Arsenal. Moyes was said to prefer players with Premier League experience, while Steidten felt West Ham could get better value by looking overseas. Moyes wanted Harry Maguire and Scott McTominay; Steidten preferred Youssouf Fofana and Denis Zakaria.
In the end an awkward compromise was reached, but the sustainability of the relationship was questioned almost immediately after Steidten’s appointment in July. A common feeling among the West Ham fan base was that Moyes, for all his brilliant work over the last few years, may have taken the club as far as he could.
Perhaps there is life in the old Scot yet. A victory over Brighton & Hove Albion on Tuesday would move West Ham to within three points of fifth place, which may well be enough to qualify for the Champions League this season. The Hammers are also through to the last 16 of the Europa League and they will fancy their chances of beating Bristol City in the third round of the FA Cup this weekend.
Many observers had wondered whether, given his pragmatic tendencies, Moyes was still the right man for the job now that West Ham’s squad is packed with attacking talent. For now at least, the 60-year-old looks to have found the right balance.
Indeed, Moyes has come up with a system that is bringing the best out of his flair players without sacrificing the physicality and defensive security he clearly desires.
Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta have been superb in the two wide roles, with both players given the license to move infield and get on the ball. Kudus has eight direct goal involvements in his last 13 appearances in all competitions, while Paqueta’s creativity is illustrated by the fact that no one in the league is averaging more through-balls per game. Meanwhile Jarrod Bowen is thriving through the middle, scoring 11 goals in 17 Premier League outings.
Moyes has given his front three a degree of freedom because of the solid foundations behind them. Tomas Soucek remains a favourite of the manager’s, valued for his height and robustness. Edson Alvarez is a disciplined, tough-tackling holding midfielder, while James Ward-Prowse marries open-play industry with superb delivery from set-pieces.
West Ham will not be confused for Manchester City any time soon. Of the goalkeepers who have played at least 10 games this season, Alphonse Areola ranks third-bottom for accurate short passes (145). It would be inaccurate to claim West Ham are a long-ball team, but Moyes is not overly fussed with building from the back either.
At the same time, they have often been fun to watch of late, especially when Kudus and Paqueta are in full flow. Unfortunately for Moyes, the former is about to jet off to the Africa Cup of Nations and the latter picked up a knee injury last week. Without that pair against a possession-based side like Brighton, we will see more of a traditional Moyesian performance from West Ham on Tuesday.
It was felt that this would probably be the Scot’s final campaign at the London Stadium, with his contract set to expire this summer. But Moyes now looks poised to sign a two-year extension, committing his future to West Ham until 2026. For as long as the Hammers are in and around the top six, no one will grumble at that.
