Whereas last weekend’s draw with Manchester United arrived as nothing but a frustrating disappointment, Wednesday night’s share of the spoils at St. Mary’s had the opposite affect. The Hammers were effectively brought down to nine men for a large portion of the match, with Adrian’s comical sending off and yet another injury to Andy Carroll, who was forced to play on due to a lack of remaining substitutes – yet Big Sam’s boys ultimately held out for the well earned point.
In retrospective news, West Ham fans have had much to be both happy and deflated by. Adrian has subsequently had his one match ban rescinded after Southampton’s Sadio Mane was adjudged to have fouled the Spaniard in the run up to his red card, but alas yet again, Andy Carroll has been struck down by another major injury which will likely keep him out for the rest of the season.
Deja vu or what.
Adrian – The Spanish shot-stopper kept things at bay until his ill-timed sending off for hand-ball outside the box, which by the judgement of even the most bias of West Ham fans, could have easily stood as a justified sending off.
Carl Jenkinson – The Arsenal loanee contributed effectively to West Ham’s mid-week clean sheet at St. Mary’s, but as his side were kept on the back foot for most of the match, Jenkinson’s attacking freedom was greatly restricted.
Cheikhou Kouyate – For the second game in a row, Cheikhou Kouyate has been forced to play at centre-back in the absence of Winston Reid and James Collins, but has thrived as a result of the change, and offered the travelling Hammers support another man of the match worthy display. The big man from Senegal might even be better in this defensive position, which could free up a very valuable space in the heart of West Ham’s midfield for future games.
James Tomkins – The same praise can be given to James Tomkins, who has just signed a well earned contract extension with his boyhood club. Although he was shaky in parts, overall Tomo done a great job at ultimately keeping Southampton quiet.
Aaron Cresswell – As was the case with Carl Jenkinson, West Ham’s other flying full-back was forced to tone down his attacking desires with his side needing to defend out the match.
Alex Song – Whilst this wasn’t the Barcelona man’s most vintage performance in a West Ham shirt, Song nevertheless proved useful at breaking down everything just in front of his back four, even if he did spread the ball about a bit too nonchalantly. As it is Song of all players however, the West Ham faithful will likely not cause a fuss over his potential mishaps.
Morgan Amalfitano – As is perhaps sometimes the situation when the Frenchman plays away from home, Wednesday night was simply not Amalfitano’s match. He got involved with some good moves on a few occasions, but ultimately nothing much came from his efforts. The former Marseille man deserves full credit for being one of West Ham’s most surprisingly good moves over the summer nonetheless.
Stewart Downing – If West Ham were ever going to score against Southampton, it would likely have been through this man. As defending turned out to be the ultimate goal of this match however, Stewart Downing’s attacking qualities had to be somewhat tamed.
Enner Valencia – As we have already payed witness to, Enner Valencia is just not that effective when deployed out wide. He looked lively in part but seemed largely indifferent overall. The Ecuadorian was replaced late on by Matt Jarvis, who for all his energy and commitment down the wing, never really made an impact either.
Diafra Sakho – In a similar sense to Enner, Diafra Sakho is not best utilized as a out wide on the wing either. This was one of his most quietest games in a West Ham shirt, which was ultimately brought to an early end by the returning Andy Carroll, who replaced the Senegalese hitman in the second half. As we all know by now however, Carroll was seemingly rushed back too early for this match, and is now receiving surgery on a season ending injury as a result. The best of luck is wished to the big man, but as this isn’t the first time West Ham fans have been in this situation, the Upton Park faithful may be left asking whether or not they will ever see Andy Carroll finish one whole season in a Hammers shirt.
Carlton Cole – In what was a rare start for West Ham’s cult-hero, who nearly packed his bags for the Hawthorns on deadline day, Carlton Cole was reintroduced into a team that wasn’t really accustomed to playing with ‘three’, or more like one, up top. That said, Carlton performed alright until he was forcibly substituted for the oncoming Jussi Jaaskelainen. The Finish veteran done well in the absence of Adrian, and proved his worth as a back up keeper in the process.
Sam Allardyce – As this game played out largely under circumstances that Big Sam could not control, the former Bolton and Newcastle boss did a decent job a steadying the ship and earning the clean sheet. Both Kevin Nolan and Mark Noble could now be back in contention for their boss as the Hammers take on West Brom in the FA Cup this Saturday.
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