West Ham United - The Academy of Football

Results Update: Pre-Season 2014/2015 Season

West Ham’s results covered in this update

---

It was very hectic summer for Sam Allardyce and his staff, who made a host of signings. Questions were asked about all of these signings, as most of them were from outside Britain, and almost none of them spoke English. The team had to prove that it glued together in the pre-season. In the first pre-season match, West Ham was certainly not a cohesive unit. After that bad start, their form picked up and Allardyce must’ve been relieved, because the fans were starting to get impatient.

The Hammers started off the pre-season with a match against Swiss team FC Sankt Gallen. The fans in the stadium expected a win, certainly after Amalfitano put the home team 1-0 up after half an hour. But Sankt Gallen had other ideas and Vannaz equalised after 68 minutes. In the second minute of added time the Swiss outfit even secured the win through a well deserved goal by Sérignat. West Ham were atrocious in the match, and the fans weren’t at all happy.

Next up was an away game against Zorya Luhansk, who qualified for the Europa League for the first time in their existence last season. Again, a win was expected, but West Ham failed to impress. The away team took the lead, just like in the first match, through an Enner Valencia goal. But only two minutes after, Ivanchenko equalised from the penalty spot. 1-1 was the way the match ended, leaving West Ham fans questioning if the bad start to the pre-season was down to all the signings.

A match against VfR Aalen was the third of six pre-season friendlies. Fans were now getting really impatient with their team, as they hadn’t won yet. Aalen quickly took the lead, after only five minutes, when Daghfous scored the 1-0. After 61 minutes, the second Bundesliga outfit extended their lead to 2-0. One minute later, Nolan got one back for West Ham, but it was too late, as the match finished 2-1. Allardyce announced he’d change the teams playing style, as he was really unhappy with the team.

This change in tactics seemed to help, as West Ham took the lead after five minutes against French outfit Angers SCO, through an Enner Valencia strike. Nicolas Pépé equalised after 51 minutes, leaving Allardyce furious with his team’s defensive work. It didn’t take long for West Ham to obtain their lead though, as another Kevin Nolan strike in the 61st minute meant West Ham won their first match of the season.

From that win onwards, West Ham started playing better. Starting with a good draw against Sampdoria. This match was the team’s first real test, and they played a good match. James Tomkins gave West Ham the lead just before half-time, but Sampdoria didn’t give up and Mihajlovic’s team scored a dramatic equaliser in the 89th minute. Despite not winning, there were signs of West Ham starting to play more as a team in this match, and people were getting a bit more optimistic.

In their last friendly, against Boreham Wood, West Ham finally showed some attacking intentions, resulting in a very good 6-2 win. West Ham scored four goals in the first half, two scored by Downing, two scored by Amalfitano, meaning Allardyce’s team were 4-0 in front at half time. After the break, West Ham weren’t as sharp, allowing Boreham Wood to score two goals. But West Ham quickly regained control, and Enner Valencia scored West Ham’s last two goals, giving them a 6-2 win.

Player of the Pre-Season:
Morgan Amalfitano, a player West Ham recently signed from Olympique Marseille, was one of West Ham’s few good players this pre-season. The right winger scored three goals and assisted another three.