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West Ham cannot be considered a bad side, not by any means. They possess skill in their roster, and desire. You can see it in every tackle, every gut-busting run and in the frustrated body language when a pass fails to connect. This intensity is mirrored on the touchline, with Rehanne Skinner animated throughout their loss to Aston Villa – “maintain shape”, “come closer”, “talk to her” and “Fion can’t get out” were part of the numerous commands from the technical area, as spectators behind the bench treated to the thoughts of the coach while the match is under way. Skinner is fully involved, she is engaged, the players are engaged, so where is the issue?

Worrying Numbers Tell the Story

Five games in and they have zero points, have let in sixteen goals and scored twice. They are capable of scoring though, five different goal scorers in a rout of their opponents in the League Cup on 24 September a momentary relief from defeat before the Blues put three past them in 15 minutes last weekend to return them in their position. Facing Chelsea West Ham performed decently throughout, that quarter-hour disastrous period was an outlier and, while supporters worried about a complete after the break collapse, they regrouped, excelled with their backs against the wall, and only conceded one more to the champions.

Steadiness over a full match has been a consistent problem. The first five minutes and second half against Chelsea were periods to be proud of, as was the opening 45 against Arsenal and closing 45 against Brighton.

Recurring Pattern Versus the Opponents

Against Villa the narrative was repeated, the visiting team controlling the ball in their home ground but the Hammers having chances too, nine attempts to Villa’s 11. They were in it in the opening period, challenging, performing adequately to be able to take something from the game, the distinction though was that West Ham had just one attempt on goal, as opposed to the visitors’ four.

The team are not failing by their approach, grit or coaching choices, they are failing by individuals not being clinical when they find good positions. It is that choice-making in the attacking zone that requires improvement, the five strikes scored against WSL2 side their cup foes may indicate the issue: when they have time on the ball they choose correctly, when they are being pressed and harried by top-tier rivals it’s as though they struggle to think quickly enough.

“In my view we were clinical enough in the final third and we just were missing that decisive quality where the final ball was at times a bit over hit, not quite the necessary precision and then just being prepared to attempt efforts a little bit earlier,” stated Skinner.

“Considering the players, when I observe them one by one, I just feel like they’re somewhat reluctant relative to where we were before. The desire to run at people and be very direct was really, really strong and we just need to get that fight back where we’re a more ruthless in and around the penalty area, where we are more courageous to go 1v1 and where what will be will be but we’re committing players and we’re attempting to create opportunities. This is an area that we’ve just somewhat taken our foot off the gas a little bit on and we’re seeking assists as opposed to being a more straightforward and being a bit more confident in our own ability.”

Expensive Instances Lead to Defeat

During the match that was costly again. Shortly after a forward glanced a header wide, they were made to pay at the other end, Kirsty Hanson receiving her set-piece back from a teammate before driving the ball into the opposite side. Seven minutes later and Natalia Arroyo’s side had a larger lead, Wilms’s set-piece lifted over the wall and in.

It was a further difficult day for West Ham and their lack of results on the table will inevitably lead to doubts arising about Skinner’s future. That would be wholly unjust though. Much work to be done for sure, self-belief and speed in choices must improve, and the squad must bear some responsibility for that, but they are a team that is struggling from a lack of love and care from the organization as a whole, and the coach is a victim of that rather than the cause of the team’s problems.

Broader Issues at Work

During the off-season, nine players departed and only four arrived. The quality of those coming in in this window was arguably higher overall, but a limited funds has resulted in that season-on-season the club have seen depart their top talents to better teams. Before questions are raised about the manager’s reign, she merits a opportunity to show what she can do without constraints and that requires the club improving its support – and the same could be said for several WSL teams.