League Cup: Allardyce recognises threat to West Ham job

Manager rues humiliating 6-0 defeat to City.

MANCHESTER:

West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce accepted that his position was under scrutiny after his side crashed 6-0 at Manchester City in their League Cup semi-final first leg.

Alvaro Negredo plundered a hat-trick as City destroyed hapless West Ham at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday to all but qualify for the final.

Wednesday’s result came just three days after a second-string West Ham team were thrashed 5-0 at Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup, while the east London club are also currently second from bottom in the Premier League.

Allardyce received public backing from West Ham co-chairman David Gold and David Sullivan prior to the loss at City, but he conceded that he needs to turn the situation around as quickly as possible.

“You cannot keep losing football matches, that is for sure, as a manager,” he told reporters at the Etihad Stadium.

“You cannot think it will be allowed to continue. I don’t want it to continue.

“We have to get those [injured] players back as quick as we can and we have got to not lose confidence in our own ability.”

The humiliating defeat at City concluded to a chorus of calls for Allardyce’s head from the visiting fans, but the manager said that he understood their frustration.

“It is life, isn’t it, when you are not doing well? You get stick as a manager and I am getting stick at the moment,” Allardyce said.

“That is the way goes, that is the way this job is. You take it on the chin and get on with it.

“When they travel all this way, and the team gets beaten heavily, that they are going to give you some criticism.

“But we are not the first team to get beaten here by many, many goals and we won’t be the last having seen Manchester City through this season.” 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 10^th, 2014.

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