The Looming Reality of Relegation
I know we’ve still got plenty of games left to play but I cannot see where or how we stay in the Premier League. But as much as it’s quick to see all the negatives of going down, I do believe there will be a few positive ones.
The Great Reset: Stadium and Atmosphere
The main one is hitting that major reset button which I think is needed. This isn’t just the squad but the atmosphere too, with the amount of tourists at the stadium we have found it hard to create much atmosphere.
One positive which aligns with the reset is we will be giving our academy players a chance to make the first team. We have just let George Earthy go back on loan to Bristol City where he had a brilliant season last year and we know how well Freddie Potts has done in the Championship too, so with this, I think we have academy players that understand the player you need to be to succeed in the Championship.
As for the atmosphere, now this could go one or two ways. I think one certainty is the stadium will only have West Ham fans in the home end, I highly doubt any tourist wants to watch a Championship game. This would help create a better atmosphere on match days and maybe bring back the old West Ham feeling but I highly doubt we will fill a 60,000 seater without a few tourists. Having said that, I wouldn’t write off 50,000 per game and a sell out for the Millwall match. I don’t believe the ticket scenario will be as bad as people think.
The Ownership and Recruitment Gamble
There are, of course, a few negatives and the main one is the money we will have and lose going down. Now I think we will have enough to buy many good Championship players after some players leave. But my biggest issue is the players we will buy as we don’t have the smartest track history with purchases.
We will attract many top Championship players due to the higher wages we can offer and the chance of promotion but we have to ‘trust’ our owners to bring these players in. I do believe should we get relegated, we will come straight back up and there’s something to look forward to having a winning campaign over another 16th-placed finish and no cup runs. But if we don’t come straight back up, every year will become harder to get back to the Premier League.
Facing the ‘Unthinkable’ at the London Stadium
Another thing I’m starting to like is our owners will have to deal with, in their words, the ‘unthinkable’ and us actually go down after moving to their ‘World Class stadium’. I can’t say I’m happy we are going down but I’m not against it as much as maybe I should be.
There’s lots wrong at West Ham right now and I actually believe it will help fix it like it did with Newcastle. West Ham and Newcastle have very similar fans with their passion and not ever expecting trophies and will support through all the bad times. So maybe I’m holding on to this more than I should but we have to try and see the positives in this.
Be the first to comment