In the Premier League, the Hammers suffered a devastating defeat at St. James’ Park.
About 75 minutes into West Ham United’s match versus Newcastle United on Tyneside, the boisterous Hammers overpowered their struggling hosts, and the travelling fans went wild.
Defensive lapses have plagued West Ham this season, and this was evident at St. James’ Park when David Moyes’ team threw away a 3-1 lead to give Newcastle a chance to advance to the Europa League.
It was an absolute thriller, one of those games they could have used as a billboard to promote the Premier League and everything it involves, but West Ham won’t care since they gave in to pressure, lost a commanding lead, and are now only just holding onto seventh place in the top tier.
At minute 69, everything changed with the introduction of Kalvin Phillips.
Kalvin Phillips’ performance vs Newcastle
It’s likely that Phillips was full of optimism when he arrived to the London Stadium in January, confident that his terrible time with Manchester City was over and that he could perform at the top level with enthusiasm once more.
He’s been wearing an Irons shirt for so long that it’s just surprising how awful he’s been, seemingly making a mistake every time he steps onto the field.
After 75 minutes at Newcastle, Phillips gave up the penalty that Alexander Isak used to score his brace, cutting the lead in half. In 21 minutes of play, he finished with 13 touches; according to Sofascore, he lost the ball five times while making four of nine attempts at a pass.
This is not just a hiccup; it’s beyond rusty. Like a pot of oil splashed into a body of water, tainting and ruining it, Phillips’ incredible lack of confidence has permeated his hardworking skill set.
Though Phillips was undoubtedly not the primary offender on a dismal afternoon in the North East, there is a claim that the England player’s called foul on Anthony Gordon was soft and set off the comeback.
Vladimir Coufal declared prior to the game that he was targeting Eddie Howe’s team to surpass his record for most Premier League assists in a single season.
Let’s assume that he didn’t walk the walk.
Vladimir Coufal’s game in numbers
After acquiring Czech forward Tomas Soucek from Slavia Prague in 2020 for a steal of £5 million, Coufal has been a fantastic addition to West Ham. In 144 games, he has scored 20 assists.
The right-back’s afternoon statistics are not pretty, though. Isak converted the first of two spot-kicks for Newcastle after he was fouled early in the match and was harassed throughout the contest.
The 31-year-old gave himself a 4/10 match rating by The Evening Standard’s Malik Ouzia because of his terrible performance, which included him being ‘rash when diving in on Gordon to lose an early penalty and careless in control for much of the afternoon.’
Coufal’s 5.6 Sofascore rating was the lowest of any player on the day. With Ben Johnson and other players waiting in the wings, Coufal might be benched against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday night, given the intensity of that Premier League match. Everything is on the line.