Although West Ham United’s problems run deeper and go back longer than the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo, Graham Potter’s replacement at the London Stadium is not making life any easier for himself.
For the second time in the space of just four days, Hammers legend Tony Cottee was left baffled by another team selection which ranged from the confusing to the wholly inexplicable. Almost unexplainable.
No centre-forward – well, until Ollie Scarles’ injury saw Callum Wilson introduced on 25 minutes, necessitating a complete overhaul of a bizarre set-up – the full-backs on the opposite sides once again, and a midfield made up of Tomas Soucek and Andy Irving.
Former striker Carlton Cole wonders if West Ham are trying to protect young Freddie Potts by leaving him on the bench behind a couple of more experienced campaigners. If that is indeed the case, the sight of Soungoutou Magassa and Mateus Fernandes sitting next to Potts among the West Ham United substitutes was far more difficult to explain.
Especially considering Fernandes stepped up to score a consolation at Leeds – providing brief hope during Friday night’s 2-1 defeat in West Yorkshire – and after Soungoutou Magassa completed more tackles than Soucek and Irving combined despite playing the final 15 minutes or so.
In a period where the entire universe seems to exist purely to break Hammers’ spirits, the sight of Josh Cullen running the show during another invaluable Burnley victory less than 48 hours later only adds to the suspicion that, if God does indeed exist, then he is probably a Spurs supporter.
Burnley’s Josh Cullen is outperforming every West Ham United midfielder
Sold by West Ham to Anderlecht for just £1 million back in 2020, Josh Cullen is a Premier League captain these days.
He might not be as openly talismanic as Jarrod Bowen is at the London Stadium, but Cullen leads his Burnley outfit in a different, more subtle, but no-less impactful way.
The man who makes the Clarets tick. Their midfield metronome. No one produced more passes than he during Sunday’s thrilling 3-2 win at Wolves. Thirteen more than the next best. And none of Scott Parker’s starters completed more than his 93 per cent.
To describe Cullen as a neat and tidy distributor, though, would be like describing Adam Sandler as nothing more than a slapstick comedy specialist. While Sandler has showcased far more dramatic chops in his later years, the now-29-year-old Republic of Ireland international has blossomed beyond Burnley’s two-time promotion-winning pass-master. Quietly becoming one of the more complete, influential midfielders outside of the Premier League’s best-performing clubs.
In fact, there can be no doubt really that Cullen – a West Ham academy graduate remember – is performing far, far better than any of the midfielders currently at the London Stadium.
Following successive wins over Leeds and Wolves – the latter sealed by a 95th minute Lyle Foster decider – the gap between Cullen’s current club and his old one now stands at six points.
“He’s been around the block and he knows what it’s about,” Newcastle legend Alan Shearer said on Match of the Day after Cullen scored one and set up the other during Burnley’s 2-0 victory over fellow surprise-packages Sunderland back in August.
“He stood out in everything he did, whether it was showing a great example, a great attitude, closing down, chasing down lost causes, he was at the heart of everything Burnley did well.
“He used all of his experience and know-how to get in tackles, but his goal was fantastic.”
Could West Ham make a similar mistake with Freddie Potts?
Yes, Cullen inadvertently handed Wolves a route back into the game as the Clarets eventually secured a third win since their top-flight return, but the penalty he gave away with Burnley 2-0 was harsh in the extreme.
Something even former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher, usually one to side with his fellow officials, admitted later on.
Apart from that one bad moment, Cullen was exceptional throughout at Molineux. Dropping between the centre-halves to begin attacks, constantly playing his way out of danger, forcing Sam Johnstone into a save with a fabulous volley, and then providing the ‘assist for the assist’ for Zian Flemming’s second of a topsy-turvy first-half.
A quite sumptuous pass completely took Wolves’ right-back Ki-Jana Hoever out of the game, allowing Quillindschy Hartman to score for Flemming to double his tally for the afternoon.
The similarities between Cullen and Freddie Potts, meanwhile, are pretty obvious. Two promising, homegrown midfielders capable of providing energy and quality both in and out of possession.
Yet, while Cullen was forced to leave his beloved Hammers in search of regular first-team football, one wonders how much longer Potts’ patience can bend before it snaps. Especially considering that those ahead of him in Nuno’s pecking order – the lumbering Soucek and the limited Irving in particular – are hardly justifying their place.
The West Ham fans told Nuno he had ‘lost the plot’ leaving Potts out against Brentford and Leeds. One can only wonder if the Hammers could one day be looking at another Josh Cullen situation unless something changes.
