West Ham have performed significantly better than anyone could have foreseen over the last three games. Four points from meetings with Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal is four points more than many had expected from the three matches, and even then, it took a late David Silva goal for City to overcome the Hammers to avoid an upset in Manchester. Since David Moyes took over at the London Stadium, West Ham have improved, even if few gave them a chance of staying up.
The east London side were one of the favourites for the drop down into the Championship under Slaven Bilic and while Moyes wasn’t the popular choice among supporters, the former Sunderland boss has done well to exact morale boosting results in back-to-back London derbies. Clean sheets against both Chelsea and Arsenal have also gone a long way to helping the side move away from the drop zone, with Adrian’s return to the first team fold a key role in that return to form.
The Spaniard’s midweek start was just the sixth time he has featured from the off in a West Ham shirt this season – in that time, he’s been on the losing side just the once, that in the aforementioned 2-1 defeat at City. Moyes’ decision to drop Joe Hart from the XI was enforced, with the England international unable to play against his parent club due to loan stipulations, but it was as good an excuse as any for the Hammers boss to at long last leave the 30-year-old Englishman out of the side.
Only Stoke (36) have conceded more Premier League goals than West Ham (32) this season, with 30 of those coming in Hart’s 14 starts. What’s more, only Simon Mignolet (55.3%) has a worse save success rate than Hart (56.7%) of the 21 goalkeepers to make five or more top-flight appearances this season. To really drive home the point, of the 19 Premier League goalkeepers to make 10 or more starts this term, only compatriot and Stoke shotstopper Jack Butland (2) has kept fewer clean sheets than Hart (3).
Waiting for the right opportunity to banish Hart to the substitutes’ bench was Moyes’ plan and the visit to City provided just that. Indeed, West Ham’s defence looks far more solid with Adrian back between the sticks and it’s no coincidence that the form has picked up now the 30-year-old goalkeeper is back in the first team picture. The only issue now is where does this leave Hart, both in the short-term and long-term.
Moyes has praised Hart’s professional approach both on and off the pitch and admits he took the decision to drop behind Adrian in the pecking order well. However, many felt his loan switch to West Ham was his final chance to re-establish himself as a Premier League standard goalkeeper. He was deservedly praised for his decision to move to Torino last summer in pursuit of first team football after Pep Guardiola made it clear he had no future at the Etihad Stadium.
However, even in Italy, Hart’s mistakes would crop up from time to time. Since the start of last season, no player has made more errors that have led to an opposition goal than Hart (7), two of which have come this term, the joint-highest in the Premier League. Unless Adrian succumbs to injury or suspension, then it’s unlikely that Hart will reclaim his starting spot from his goalkeeping teammate and you can’t say the former’s return to the XI is not deserved.
Since the start of the 2016/17 Premier League campaign, West Ham are conceding an average of 1.92 goals per game without Adrian starting, that figure dropping to 1.42 when he features from the off. For now, Hart is expected to watch on from the sidelines as West Ham continues their resurgence and bid to pull away from the relegation zone. Beyond the season, though, it remains to be seen where Hart’s future lies.
With no place in the City squad, they’re unlikely to want to retain his services, even with his current deal at the Etihad Stadium running until 2019. Considering his high wages, too, Hart’s career is now at a crossroads and it very much remains to be seen where it goes from here. With West Ham performing better with Adrian in goal, for the time being, the only direction Hart’s career is going is further down the Hammers goalkeeper pecking order.
