One West Ham United player has really struggled since joining the club, and Joe Cole has offered us an explanation as to why that might be.
Joe Cole began his career at West Ham and he reached the very top of the game with Chelsea after leaving the East London outfit in 2003.
Cole was, and still is, a huge fan favourite amongst the Hammers faithful, so anything that he says about our current side carries real weight.
The 42-year-old was on punditry duty in the TNT Sports studio for last night’s Europa League clash with TSC Backa Topola.
And Cole was asked why Danny Ings has found the going so tough since moving to the London Stadium back in January.
David Moyes preferred young striker Divin Mubama to the 31-year-old when selecting his starting lineup last night.
Ings was absolutely shocking against Burnley on Saturday, but Moyes bizarrely offered him support after the game.
However, the proof was in the pudding when the Scot named his starting XI out in Serbia tonight. It’s clear than Ings has really struggled since joining West Ham, but why?
Joe Cole explains why Danny Ings has struggled at West Ham
The former Hammer was posed the question why things haven’t worked out for the former Aston Villa, Southampton, Liverpool and burnley hitman at the London Stadium.
And Cole responded, when speaking on TNT Sports (Thursday November 30th, 5:08pm):
“It’s not quite worked out for Danny Ings. He’s a top player and has still got goals in him. I think the way that David Moyes likes to play, Mubama he can stretch you but Danny, he was a runner in his younger days and now he’s a fantastic technician and a box player now. It’s unfortunate for Danny.”
That’s spot on isn’t it. Ings was obviously a decent striker throughout his career, but things haven’t worked out at West Ham because he is painfully ill-suited to Moyes’s system.
Moyes made a massive mistake bringing the 31-year-old striker to the Hammers 10 months ago – it should have been so obvious to him that he would never work in his system.
The Scot demands his centre-forward to be physical, run the channels and create space for his teammates, and Ings clearly isn’t that kind of forward.
Joe Cole highlighted how he’s a bad fit for West Ham, and I fully expect him to leave the club either in January or next summer.
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