Antonio takes Hammers up to seventh

West Ham 2 West Brom 1

The Moyes versus Allardyce derby (El Tactico?) is on BT Sport this time, with my pal Fraser presumably watching from behind the sofa. Dawson puts a free header wide from a West Ham corner early on and for most of the first half Big Sam's men defend with six back. There's very little space for Lanzini or Benrahma to create, though Coufal does fire just wide and Lanzini places a free kick on to the roof of the net. 

Big Sam has clearly told his men to fire every free kick straight into the West Ham box, but the defence stands up well to these rare threats. Just when it's starting to resemble trying to break down our bogey side FC Astra, the breakthrough comes in added time. Benrahma does a lot of twisting and turning to finally find space to play in a deep cross. Coufal fires it back hard across the goalmouth and Bowen chests it home. A good poacher's finish.

The second half sees the Hammers rapidly lose their hard-won lead as the midfield stands off, Dawson backs away and Pereira runs unchallenged to fire home from the edge of the area. The Irons up their game and exert some pressure. Antonio sets up Lanzini, whose shot is cleared off the line by O'Shea, before Rice fires just past the post. A well-worked quick free kick then sees Declan Rice shoot across the face of the goal.

Moyes makes what seems to be a negative double substitution taking off Benrahma and Lanzini. But it's actually quite a shrewd tactical move as Fornals gives the Hammers some extra zip in midfield and playing Bowen on the left and Yarmolenko wide on the right stretches the Albion defence.

RESPECTING THE POINTS

The winner arrives on 66 minutes when Cresswell fires in another cross from the left and Yarmolenko heads it back. Antonio has to move backwards to athletically spin and fire home a great finish. Matt, who has just spent most of his wages on a £25 BT pass, never doubted that Yarmy would come on and assist the winner.

It's a nervous end to the game as WBA show good team spirit to chase an equaliser. A tired Antonio has to be subbed for Noble and the Hammers play the final ten minutes without a striker. Albion very nearly snatch an equaliser late on when Furlong fires a cross just past Fabianski's post. BFS looks exasperated, not that we're gloating.

So another win without playing brilliantly. But this side is certainly resilient and we move up to seventh, above poor old Chelsea. Though this being West Ham, despair is never far behind elation. The post-match interviews reveal that the PL are investigating the non-selection of Robert Snodgrass after Big Sam claimed there was an agreement between the clubs not to play him. 

My immediate thought is of the Tevez affair, and that West Ham will qualify for Europe but then be punished by the PL with relegation. Though hopefully this is West Brom's problem not West Ham's. A similar non-selection controversy after Everton signed Tim Howard from Man United in 2007 (also under Moyes) ended with no sanctions.

But let's forget about Snodgate for the moment. This was another productive evening and we're grinding out results. West Ham are half-way through the season and three points off third place. At this rate we might even stay up. Irons!

PLAYER RATINGS: Fabianski 6; Coufal 7, Dawson 6, Ogbonna 6, Cresswell 7; Benrahma 6 (Fornals 6), Rice 6, Soucek 5, Lanzini 6 (Yarmolenko 6); Bowen 7, Antonio 8 (Noble 5).

You can't keep an old West Ham manager down

Old West Ham managers just keep on returning. Alan Pardew has just been appointed manager of West Brom while Big Sam Allardyce is said to be in line for the Everton job and another nice little earner. While Slaven Bilic was also said to have been approached for the West Brom job, but sensibly decided to have a rest. 

It's not as if West Ham have been a particularly successful club. Pards and Big Sam are competent gaffers, but it does rather illustrate the fact that Premier League clubs are not willing to take a chance on new talent. The only real gamble was Hull and then Watford's appointment of Marco Silva, and now he's much in demand, so it can't be that risky. At this rate Alan Curbishley, Glenn Roeder and Harry Redknapp may soon have new clubs as well. 

Big Sam drops out

So Big Sam is retiring from management to "savour life" and go travelling. Wonder if when he hits the hippy trail he'll come across the West Ham Way?

Big Sam undone

So Big Sam has been undone by greed. An England manager on £3 million a year shouldn't need to do deals with 'businessmen' from Singapore to be a 'keynote speaker' at £100k a pop. If it's too good to be true chances are it's a Daily Telegraph sting. Allardyce was clear he was going to notify his employers of the offer, but it's unlikely they would have ever agreed. 

It's also worrying that West Ham have been dragged into it, with Sam mentioning ways of 'getting round' the FA's third party ownership rules and bringing up the Enner Valencia deal. He did say that West Ham had bought the 'whole player', though some clarification from the club is now essential as to what type of deal it was and how much the agents received. David Sullivan is quoted in the Sun saying: "Valencia's economic rights were wholly owned by Pachuca when we bought him. Sam is wrong. But he didn't know much about the actual transfer deal other than wanting the player. We have not broken any rules on third party ownership."

For a man who often spoke about perception, Allardyce seems very poor at understanding how certain things will be perceived. He didn't seem to understand that ridiculing the West Ham way in his first press conference would immediately alienate the fans, as did his ear-cupping against Hull, or that the England manager has to be above grubby deals and can't be indiscreet about Roy Hodgson or the players or offer advice on ways around FA rules with people he's just met and had a social drink with. 

You do wonder why Allardyce was so foolish two weeks into the England job and why his agent Mark Curtis didn't stop him and was instead trying to bump up Sam's fee. And the sad part is that if he sticks to football he's a decent manager, not to everyone's taste admittedly, but he just might have instilled some more self-belief into the England side. Now England are in turmoil too. 

Big Sam for England?

There must be a few West Ham fans rubbing their eyes in disbelief at the news that Sam Allardyce is being interviewed for the England job. He did a solid job at West Ham, but never fitted in because he was a results-at-all-costs manager and was too brash to acknowledge the West Ham way.

It should be acknowledged he's a decent Premier League manager with a lot of experience. Big Sam kept Sunderland up last season through instilling a system and making some astute signings and he's managed at Bolton, Newcastle, Blackburn and West Ham without ever getting relegated and mainly improved those sides. Though if Allardyce is the best English candidate, I'd certainly prefer a foreign coach like Jurgen Klinsmann.

But if the England job did go to Big Sam, then concentrating on results might not be such a bad thing. We don't have to watch them play every week, and grinding out results and respecting points is what tournaments are all about. The team spirit certainly improved while he was at West Ham and players seem to want to play for him. A clear system and a slightly scary manager might improve things after the misery against Iceland, when Kane, Alli, Sterling, Rooney and co choked.

And at least Mark Noble might finally get a call-up from Big Sam, along with Aaron Cresswell and Andy Carroll. While Kevin Nolan will presumably be plucked from the Orient and installed as captain…

It would be a mistake to remove Big Sam

A lot of stories have been finding their way into the press claiming that Sam Allardyce is on his way out at West Ham. Yesterday's Daily Mirror ran the story as its back page lead, claiming Big Sam was on the brink of leaving after disputes with David Sullivan, while in the Standard Ken Dyer wrote: "Still though, there is apparent disharmony and the elephant that is Allardyce's future remains firmly in the room." While the Daily Telegraph claimed that West Ham are looking to David Moyes and Slaven Bilic as possible successors. Sullivan and Gold have always said that they review the managerial situation at the end of each season, but with West Ham in the top eight the silence over a new contract is bound to attract speculation.

Much of the problem appears to be transfer policy, with Sullivan claiming the credit for signing Diafra Sakho and also said to be behind the signing of the loaned-out Mauro Zarate. Now it seems Sullivan has instigated a move for former Paris St Germain striker Nene, who might be the most expensive signing we ever make if it loses us a manager. Do we buy by committee like Liverpool, does the chairman buy the players or is the manager in charge of recruitment? It seems extraordinary the club has no clear strategy in place on transfers.

SHOULD HE STAY OR SHOULD HE GO?
In my view it would be a mistake to change the manager at this stage. There's a certain section of fans who will never take to Allardyce, mainly on the grounds that he's sometimes arrogant, a bit podgy, sounds northern and has a reputation for direct football. But he's achieved all he's been asked to do and I can't think of many other managers who could have performed a better job. He rebuilt the side and achieved promotion at the first attempt, something few teams do. If he hadn't, we could be where Bolton and Wigan are now, at the bottom end of the Championship.

West Ham then consolidated with Premier League finishes of tenth and thirteenth. Yes, the football was poor at times last season, but this season Big Sam's more than fulfilled his brief. We've recruited new players, played two up front and entertained with a midfield diamond, beating Man City and Liverpool and outplaying Man United in the process. We've even seen West Ham in the top four. His PR has improved too, with no more ear-cupping and even words of praise for the fans. Allardyce also has another commodity; he is the second most experienced manager in the Premier League. Another factor in his favour is that most of the players seem to respect him and, barring the WBA debacle, the team spirit has looked the best it's been in years.

Had we got rid of Allardyce last season his replacement would probably have been Malky Mackay, and look what sort of trouble that might have left us in. He's not perfect, but tellingly, fans of other teams all seem to think the West Ham board would be making a big mistake getting rid of Big Sam. We don't want to end a fine season with self-inflicted wounds. Sort it out, Mr Sullivan and Mr Gold.

Play it again, Sam?

So it's Big Sam. Let's be honest, we're desperate. Relegated, debts of £80 million and an Olympic Stadium to fill. I'd take a season of ugly football to go back up - and remember Pardew's line-up that finished sixth struggled against big, physical Championship teams. And it has to be admitted Allardyce has the best CV of all the candidates.

But what happens beyond (hopefully) promotion? You'd trust Allardyce would realise that he has to merge set-piece football with the passing tradition of Greenwood and Lyall, or the crowd will turn on him. Allardyce is particularly vulnerable being a northerner too. You'd hope that his experience at Newcastle means he knows the importance of winning over the home crowd. In Sam's favour, Grant's defence was that we played good football (which we didn't) and look where that got us.

Yes, we'd settle for fifth place and the Europa League, which was the small miracle he achieved at Bolton, but not at any price.

So far Sullivan and Gold have got all the big decisions wrong: undermining Zola, appointing Grant, then undermining him with the botched O'Neill approach. Let's pray they've got this one right.

Maybe we can now win matches and lose friends, which would be a change. As will be wearing clogs in Ken's Cafe. But will Nigel cheer ugly goals? And can Fraser's dodgy neck take it? Over to you, Big Sam.

Sam's town?

Horrible rumour on goal.com that we are considering sacking Avram Grant and replacing him with Sam Allardyce. Chris Hughton maybe... but not Big Sam. Never can a club and manager have been less suited...

Meanwhile today's Sun claims that Grant will "be read the riot act" by Sullivan, Gold and Brady and that the trio are unhappy with his "laid-back attitude". They can't be too happy either that he's asked for £10 million for new players having spent £6 million on Reid and Barrera.

We now have four games we should be capable of getting some points from in Blackburn and Fulham away and Everton and Wolves at home. If we keep losing though then surely Avram will be gone...