Forget Manchester United and Liverpool clashes, West Ham's resolve will be tested more by QPR's visit Oct 01, 2014 10:25 Opinion by SteveStammers Sam Allardyce's men were impressive again at Old Trafford last weekend but fixtures they should be winning, like Sunday's, have often proved their Achilles heel Matthew Lewis Expectations: The Hammers are favourites to beat QPR on Sunday The players at West Ham may need some convincing but the match at Upton Park on Sunday will be a more severe test of their resolve than the one at Old Trafford last Saturday. Manchester United away has never been a fruitful excursion over the years. None of the travelling support and very few of the neutrals expected anything but a United win. True, if Kevin Nolan's effort had not been ruled offside it would have brought a four point haul inside six days but three points from matches with Liverpool and United is acceptable. Now come Queens Park Rangers at home - and kind of encounter that has been the Achilles heel for West Ham over the years. Rangers are, to put it mildly, having trouble adapting to life back in the Premier League. A win and a draw from six matches does not make comfortable reading. By contrast, West Ham have responded well to each setback. The home defeat by Tottenham was followed by an impressive win at Crystal Palace but then came a dismal performance against Southampton. However, a draw at Hull and a comprehensive win against Liverpool rekindled optimism. The setback last Saturday came as no shock but West Ham were not embarrassed. Rangers should be a win waiting to happen. But it doesn't work like that at Upton Park. Games West Ham should win are often lost. The atmosphere will be different, a contrast to that against Liverpool. Then it was vibrant, close to hostile and the players reacted accordingly. Dominant: West Ham outplayed Liverpool in their last home game Now they must start over. The expectation level will be high - just as it was against Southampton. West Ham flopped that day and they cannot afford a repeat against a team which, on recent form, they should record a win. Manager Sam Allardyce accused his players of talking the talk but unable to translate that bravado into meaningful action. There dare not be a repeat on Sunday or the antipathy towards Allardyce could again manifest itself. But there has been a significant change in the shape of the team since the Southampton debacle and it has involved Stewart Downing. At Hull, he was given a free role and it has given the 30-year-old a responsibility on which he has thrived. Too often Downing's ability that earned him 34 caps has been shown only sporadically in his natural role as a wide player. Forty-five impressive minutes have been followed too often by a spell of isolation as West Ham have struggled to give him enough meaningful possession. Now he has been given licence to roam and he is making a consistent impact. Rangers will struggle to pin him down and with Diafra Sakho emerging as real menace and Enner Valencia looking more and more at home, there is a golden opportunity for a win that will take West Ham into mid-table comfort. But then again - West Ham felt the same before they played Southampton. It is up to the players - not Allardyce - to show they have got what it takes. http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/footb...nited-liverpool-clashes-4352766#ixzz3EtDJI51J Follow us: @DailyMirror on Twitter | DailyMirror on Facebook
Our only hope is that he moves on to another prem club that we haven't played yet... or is that being negative? Can't decide...😣
I have a sneaky feeling every ****ing week that we are going to win. I'm sure it's some kind of syndrome with a name and everything.
I can feel it in my water especially after 3 pints , after 5 pints I've lost caring , after 8 pints you wanna take it outside do ya. Ps not really I'm an Ameretto man at the moment
My feeling is that we will sit back at the start of the game and allow West Ham to dominate and play with a higher tempo. We will eventually leak a goal and then try to play catch up but not quite succeed and come away with a defeat.........It's an away game! Having said that come kick off time, like the above comments, I will have an irrational feeling that we are going to come away with a win. By the end of the game I'll be saying to myself "its only a game, its only a game, its only a game................" until I come through the pain barrier and look forward to the next game when I will once again arrive before kick off with illogical optimism.
With my George Constanza thinking in full bloom .......... âMy father was a quitter, my grandfather was a quitter, I was raised to give up. Itâs one of the few things I do well.â "if every instinct I have is wrong, then the opposite would have to be right" I'm thinking & hoping we'll get smashed by the Hammers!
That sounds like something out of the Rolf Harris defence teams folder. "Your Honour my client was suffering..........."
