Still No Monday Joy For Potter

Monday nights had been fruitful for West Ham United earlier in the season however, not since Graham Potter has joined the club. They lost their last match on this day away at Chelsea and they did so again, as they opened their March fixture run with a 1-0 defeat to Newcastle United in Stratford.

The Hammers Head-Coach again named an unchanged side as he looked to steer them towards a third consecutive victory. One additional plus for him however was the inclusion of Lucas Paquetá on the bench, while youngster Luis Guilherme was also named amongst the substitutes.

Before kick-off, injured striker Michail Antonio was welcomed back to East London for the first time since his car accident in early December.

That, together with the fact that they might have gone ahead through Tomáš Souček should have given the home support an early lift but unfortunately, the Czech midfielder sent the opportunity over the top.

The hosts then wasted another chance when captain Jarrod Bowen combined to good effect with Edson Álvarez but again, it didn’t even test visiting goalkeeper Nick Pope.

Once Eddie Howe’s side had gained control, the Irons found it hard to get it back again.

Harvey Barnes was at the forefront of the action though when Bruno Guimarães set him up, he missed the target. However, the former Leicester City man was to threaten once more and he helped divert Kieran Trippier’s shot towards goal but thankfully, home goalkeeper Alphonse Areola saw the danger and made a good save.

The goalkeepers were then in action at either end of the pitch. Firstly, Pope easily kept Bowen out after the ball had broken for the home skipper, before Areola performed heroics again denying Barnes a certain goal, as the Frenchman cleared the attempt off the line.

West Ham have reverted to the style of David Moyes, which saw them try and catch teams on the break. In an effort to open the scoring, Mohammed Kudus went close but he unfortunately fired straight at Pope.

The action was then back in the West Ham half of the field and Joelinton then tried his luck but didn’t test Areola. Soon after, Aaron Cresswell prevented Jacob Murphy from getting his name on the scoresheet.

Just before half-time, Bowen had the chance to give his side the advantage but Kudus got in the way of his teammates attempt and when referee Michael Salisbury blew the whistle for the break after two minutes of stoppage time, the deadlock was yet to be broken.

The second-half was a little better from a Hammers perspective but Newcastle were still dominant for large parts. The away side stood in the way of everything that Potter’s side were throwing at them, as Bowen and Kudus both went close.

The home team kept the pressure up and were awarded a number of corners. Trippier might have scored from his but the former Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur man was prevented from finding a way through, thanks to a well timed block from Kudus.

Max Kilman was then thankful to his goalkeeper for making a stunning save, which stopped him from turning Murphy’s cross into his own net. Potter and his team were even more relieved when Alexander Isak failed to get his header on target from the follow-up.

On sixty three minutes, the Magpies edged ahead when Guimarães made the breakthrough after a shot from Barnes deflected back into his path via Jean-Clair Todibo for him to then cross to the Brazilian to beat Areola. The home bench wanted a VAR check for a push on Kilman by Isak but it was allowed to stand.

The goal was a blow for Potter, who already had Konstantinos Mavropanos, Paquetá and Carlos Soler warming up before it went in. A change of formation followed the substitutions, as the hosts were playing with four at the back by this point.

Another four minutes had passed when a fourth change was made with Evan Ferguson replacing Cresswell.

West Ham wanted a penalty after Bowen went down when Paquetá had played the ball to him but again, Salisbury gave nothing.

Danny Ings can often make an impact in the closing stages of games and he came on to replace James Ward-Prowse as the Irons made their fifth and final change on eighty four minutes. Unfortunately, he was unable to deliver the goods on this particular occasion.

The East Londoners were comfortable winners in their last match against newly-promoted Leicester City but they were on the wrong side of a result this time around. Although they played well in patches, it wasn’t anywhere near the levels they would have wanted to reach.

Hopefully they will get back to winning ways against former manager Moyes on Saturday afternoon when they make their final visit to Goodison Park and face Everton.