So then, another season of the Premier League is done and dusted and it’s time for the 20 teams to start reviewing their campaigns and putting plans in place for the 2019/2020 term.
Little has changed at the top of the league with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City marching to back-to-back English top-flight titles after the title race went right down to the wire.
However, the battle to be the best of the rest and to secure the first place outside of the top six, seventh, was just as absorbing. West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton, Leicester City and Watford were all vying for what would become the final UEFA Europa League spot after Man City defeated the Hornets in the Emirates FA Cup final.
Although the Hammers would eventually come up five points short and finish in tenth place, they still enjoyed an admirable first season under new manager Manuel Pellegrini. Ultimately, filled with more ups than it was downs, and laying the foundations for a potentially very successful reign in East London for the 65-year-old.
In light of all this, today we review the Irons’ campaign, from who the unsung hero was, to the best signing, and which player takes the unlucky crown of Flop of the Season…
Unsung hero – Lucas Perez
Every team in every campaign has their unsung hero. That player who contributes in a big way, but isn’t noticed or given as much attention as some of the other stars in the team, and in the case of West Ham’s in 2018/2019, was actually criticised by the masses.
Lucas Perez came under fire a fair amount in what proved to be his only term at the London Stadium, though in reality, defied his critics by chipping in with some crucial goals. Examples of the unsung hero’s key strikes include those in the Cardiff City and Leicester City encounters.
But despite his vital touch in front of goal on those occasions, Pellegrini felt the Spaniard had no future in his plans, and allowed the 30-year-old to join Deportivo Alaves on a permanent deal less than a year after he joined the club.
Goal of the Season
Fighting off competition from stunners such as Andriy Yarmolenko’s strike at Everton, Marko Arnautovic’s Arsenal hit and his own goals against Manchester United and Southampton, Felipe Anderson’s worldie at home to Crystal Palace takes the Hammers’ Goal of the Season crown.
Receiving the ball on the edge of the box from Javier Hernandez, the Brazilian club-record signing got it out of his feet and magnificently stroked it into the far top corner with the shape of a golf shot. The hit sent Pellegrini’s men well on their way to a third successive league win.
Turning point – Newcastle United victory
Whether good or bad, subtle or major, every campaign has its turning point, no matter what club you are. And the Irons’ arrived on the first day of December.
Up until their trip to St. James’ Park in the Premier League, the East Londoners had only managed three victories in the league and were staring down the barrel of another relegation battle. However, a 3-0 triumph in the North East sparked a run of four consecutive wins and from then, Pellegrini only ever looked up rather than down.
Success or failure? – Success
All in all, West Ham’s season has to be looked back on as a success, with the club securing a top-half Premier League finish for the first time since the 2015/2016 campaign, and achieving their highest points tally since then.
Yes, it was marred by poor performances in both the Carabao Cup and the Emirates FA Cup, with the Hammers knocked out by Sky Bet League One strugglers AFC Wimbledon in the latter of which. But there’s been clear improvement under Pellegrini, and the Claret & Blue Army couldn’t have asked for much more from the Chilean’s first term.
Most controversial moment
If you’re familiar in any way with West Ham United Football Club, you’ll know that controversy is never far around the corner and it reared its head in January when the club’s most controversial moment of 2018/2019 arrived.
Star striker Marko Arnautovic was linked with a move to the Chinese Super League throughout that transfer window, and appeared to wave goodbye to fans in the home win over Arsenal. However, after missing matches while he tried to force his move away, the number seven eventually signed a contract extension and is still in Claret & Blue. The side’s first victory following the saga wouldn’t come until late February.
Worst result – AFC Wimbledon (A) – 4-2
The low point of the campaign for the Hammers, without doubt, came in the wake of FA Cup Fourth-Round exit down at the Cherry Red Records Stadium – after their worst result of the season.
West Ham travelled to South London expecting to breeze through to the Fifth Round of football’s oldest competition against the basement boys of League One, having overcome them in the Carabao Cup already. They were met with a scintillating Wombles outfit who dispatched them 4-2, Kwesi Appiah, a Scott Wagstaff double and Toby Sibbick rendering Perez and Anderson’s goals meaningless.
Best signing – Lukasz Fabianski
Pellegrini’s first transfer window in charge was a very busy one indeed, with no fewer than 11 arrivals – two more being added in January – and just shy of £100million spent.
The pleasing thing for the board will be that there was no shortage of contenders for Signing of the Season after the splurge. In the end, it can be no other than Lukasz Fabianski, though.
At a mere £7m, the Polish international was an absolute steal, and the Irons can only imagine how many points they wouldn’t have secured if he wasn’t their number one.
Is the manager safe? – Yes
In modern football, managers are arguably the most dispensable thing, and had Pellegrini not delivered any signs of improvement in his first campaign in East London, he may well have been making way. Luckily for him, he did.
Under Slaven Bilic first and then David Moyes in 2017/2018, West Ham finished 13th on 42 points and weren’t far away at all from dropping into the Sky Bet Championship. Under the Chilean, however, they eclipsed that by three places and ten points, playing a much more attractive brand of football. So yes, Pellegrini is safe but must keep improving to remain that way.
Who should be sold?
While a mass exodus isn’t required after a much better season, the Hammers could still do with selling at least three of their current squad members and those stars are Arthur Masuaku, Robert Snodgrass and the aforementioned Arnautovic.
The first of those names has reportedly attracted interest from the likes of Spurs and Borussia Dortmund, and some fans would snap your hand off to see the back of him for a decent fee. The second, in spite of an excellent first half of 2018/2019, is now past it and West Ham must cash in. The third name, Arnautovic, is a bad egg and the club can’t risk him damaging the squad harmony anymore.
Interesting stat – Perfect Fredericks
When one of those summer signings, right-back Ryan Fredericks, looks back on his maiden season in East London, he will have mixed feelings having only really got into his groove in the latter part amid injuries and poor form.
But the 26-year-old did contribute to the most interesting club stat of the season. In the early-May 3-0 London Stadium beating of Southampton, Fredericks became the first defender since Arsenal’s Thomas Vermaelen in October 2009 to receive a perfect 10/10 match rating from renowned stats website WhoScored for his fantastic goalscoring display.
