Football
Arindam Rej, Man United Correspondent 7y

West Ham struggles 'painful' to watch - former defender Rio Ferdinand

Rio Ferdinand has said that it was "painful" to watch his former club West Ham United being thrashed by Arsenal -- and that they need to recruit players who know their way around the Premier League.

West Ham's 5-1 home beating against Arsenal on Saturday left them just one place and one point above the relegation zone. That came three days after a 4-1 defeat at Manchester United in the EFL Cup -- and they face another heavyweight, Liverpool, at Anfield on Sunday.

Ferdinand, speaking to his former West Ham team-mate and ESPN FC pundit Shaka Hislop, said: "I was at the game at the weekend when Arsenal destroyed West Ham and it was painful to watch a team that looked dejected, lacking any real desire and fight it seemed.

"Slaven [Bilic, the manager] even came out and said the team didn't play with the intensity that he is used to seeing, even from training, and that's a sorry state of affairs to see that.

"I think they've got a lot of injuries as well to key players and this is a team that probably over-achieved last season, so there was going to be a coming down. But, to this extent that we're seeing at the moment, no-one expected that.

"But I think Slaven is a good guy, a good manager, and he's someone who'll get it right, given time. I just think the recruitment right now -- in the next window and the following window -- is massive. They've got to buy well and they've got to buy some players who know their way around this league."

Ferdinand feels that complaints by the fans about the new ground and atmosphere could also be giving West Ham's players an excuse for their troubles on the pitch.

He said: "A lot of players, if they're given an opportunity to have an excuse about anything, they'll take it. It seems like that's the case a little bit at the moment."

^ Back to Top ^