An absolutely shocking fact has emerged which shows where West Ham’s problems start and end in the bid to beat the drop.
As a general rule the teams in the mix for relegation are almost always the ones with the worst defensive records.
But as reported by Hammers News last week, West Ham actually have the fifth best defence in the Premier League this season.
While that bodes well in the battle for survival, West Ham’s problems with goalscoring and chance creation do not.
It has been clear that’s where the issue is for the Hammers and David Moyes has failed to make the system work efficiently this season.
Many may not have realised just how bad things are, though, in an attacking sense.
An absolutely shocking fact has emerged which shows where West Ham’s problems start and end.
Because West Ham do not have a single player in the top 20 goalscorers outside the so-called “big six”.
Football data analysts The Other 14 focus on statistics involving – you guessed it – the clubs outside the so-called “big six”.
And their Other 14 Golden Boot rankings show the Hammers do not have one player in the top 20 so far.
Brentford striker Ivan Toney leads the way with 14 goals and Fulham’s Aleksandar Mitrovic is second with 11.
Worryingly, five of West Ham’s direct relegation rivals have at least one player in the top 20 – some of them several.
Leeds’ Rodrigo is joint third with 10 goals, Leicester have two players in fourth and fifth with James Maddison (nine) and Harvey Barnes (eight).
Forest’s Brennan Johnson is in the top 20 with five goals while Wolves have two players, Ruben Neves and Daniel Podence in there with five too. Even rock bottom Southampton have a player on the list with James Ward-Prowse on five too.
Ironically one West Ham player is on the list – Danny Ings. But unfortunately his six goals were all for Aston Villa.
Brighton have five players on the list and Newcastle two.
It is a truly shocking statistic which lays bare just how woeful West Ham’s goalscoring has been in the Premier League.
Jarrod Bowen is West Ham’s top scorer in the league this season with just four goals.
Those miserable stats simply must improve between now and May if West Ham are to get the 16-18 points that will be needed to stay up.
Dean Ashton says West Ham’s issues boil down to the fact Moyes has been found out tactically and is failing to come up with the answers.