Motson also highlights that there are no less than ten different nationalities in the West Ham team and contrasts us with the all British Southampton side, the Channel Island born Le Tissier apart. Quote Motson, "It's like the United Nations in the East End". And that's before you visit Green Street on a non match day Motty!
I know it is only highlights, but the football is breathtaking at times. The team featured Futre and the two Romanians but, Dicks apart, the most talented player on show in Claret & Blue for me is Michael Hughes. You forget how good that guy was! Funny, I didn't remember that we picked him up on a Bosman from Strasbourg, in my mind we bought him from Wimbledon and sold him back to the Dons.
The team set up 3-5-2 - remember those days? - with Dicks as one of the three central defenders. Dicks was at fault for the Southampton goal but, typically, drills home a penalty to win us the game.
Futre looks good - and his football is impressive too! - and Dumitrescu showed up for this one, winning the penalty. The team read:
Ludek Miklosko
Mark Bowen
Julian Dicks 1 (1 P)
Marc Rieper
Slaven Bilic
Danny Williamson
Robbie Slater
Iain Dowie
Stan Lazaridis
Paulo Futre
Michael Hughes 1
Subs:
Tim Breacker
Florin Raducioiu
Ilie Dumitrescu
So, the good, the bad and the ugly there! With the good covering Ludek, Dicks, Bilic, Williamson (what a shame his career was ruined by injury) and Hughes, the bad including Bowen and Rieper and the ugly featuring Dowie, Bilic and Dicks. Imagine being gang raped by those three!
The Southampton team, Le Tissier and Beasant apart, is unremarkable and, not surprisingly struggled to avoid the drop. But then so did we! Benali gets a red late in the game for clattering Futre.
However, what stands out most of all is the quality of our football when we have the ball. Allardyce acolytes take note!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Doyo5Oz54_I
3 comments:
Anony-mouse says,
Great game this- Futre's home debut I think. You're right about Michael Hughes- good little player- typical West Ham- we had a few of them around then- remember Matty Holmes? Hughes by the way if I recall correctly was if not the first Bosman, then certainly one of the first.
Funnily enough I was thinking of this team the other day as I think we are entering similar times. We had been promoted and struggled before gradually improving personnel and performance. It had to be gradual- we were skint then as well. Slowly though we built til we peaked around 1998 when we sold Danny Williamson another good lad and bought in Ian Pearce and David Unsworth to strenghten the defence. With that team we should have won the FA cup and maybe the league cup as well had it not been for Arsenal luckily getting past us twice. And yes you can be lucky twice!
I think that's what we're going to have to do again. Consolidate and build. It's not sexy but we haven't got the money or youth team to do it any other way right now.
You are right, first ever Bosman. How typical that 'Arry was the first to exploit the change. Wonder how much made its way into a Monaco bank account with a tail wagging account holder?
First highlight: long ball into the box by Dicks! Maybe Big Sam truly is playing the Hammers way! :-)
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