'You'd rather just deal with the referee on the day' - Antonio on VARpublished at 16:59 1 May
16:59 1 May
West Ham striker Michail Antonio wants VAR to be removed from the Premier League, as the panel on the Footballer's Football Podcast reflected on another officiating talking-point in Chelsea's draw with Aston Villa last weekend.
Chelsea had what would have been a late winner at Villa Park ruled out after the video assistant referee recommended a review of the on-field decision to allow the goal.
Antonio said: "I think VAR needs to be binned. In Sweden, they've voted against VAR because they've seen how it's been run in the Premier League and don't want a part of it. They should do a vote to get rid of VAR [in the Premier League].
"I think the clubs would get rid [in a vote]. I think the clubs regret bringing it in, there's no positives on it.
"You'd rather just deal with the referee on the day. There's been more arguments and things going wrong with VAR than when it was just referees."
Antonio also previewed West Ham's match against Chelsea on Sunday, adding: "You don't know what team is going to turn up when it comes to Chelsea. They have quality players but they are hot and cold right now. I'm just hoping they will be cold, and we come away with a nice win and I can get a couple [of goals]."
Remembering Marc-Vivien Foepublished at 12:54 1 May
12:54 1 May
Simon Stone Chief football news reporter
Image source, Getty Images
Today would have been Marc-Vivien Foe's 49th birthday.
It barely seems credible that it is almost 21 years since his death from a heart condition when he was playing for Cameroon at the Confederations Cup in 2003.
Foe was West Ham's record signing when he joined the club in 1999, on the same day as Paolo di Canio.
The midfielder played 48 games for the Hammers before moving to Lyon and then on loan to Manchester City in the summer of 2002.
He score nine goals in 38 games for City that season and would probably have made a permanent switch to Manchester had he not tragically died in June 2003.
His death at the age of 28 shocked the world, although sadly it took another few years before the issue of potentially fatal heart problems among supposedly super-fit professional athletes started to be properly investigated fully.
Officials 'not here to try to take goals away if we don't need to'published at 12:11 1 May
12:11 1 May
Image source, Getty Images
Referees' chief Howard Webb believes match official Tony Harrington was right to rule out Max Kilman's late goal in Wolves' 2-1 defeat by West Ham last month.
The goal was initially awarded on-field by the referee before VAR reviewed the incident and saw that Tawanda Chirewa was stood in an offside position and impacting Hammers goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski's line of sight.
Hartington overturned his decision having seen the incident again, but Wolves boss Gary O'Neil called it "possibly the worst decision I have ever seen" and was subsequently charged by the FA and since received a touchline ban.
Speaking on Sky Sports' Mic'd Up programme, Webb said: "You can see there on the footage that [Chirewa] is really close proximity to Fabianski right in front of him and in an offside position.
"He positions himself there from the corner but doesn't get back into an onside position when Kilman heads the ball forward. He remains offside and he's therefore penalised for that offence."
The Key Match Incidents panel - the five-person independent committee which reviews all 'key' decisions made by Premier League referees and VAR after each round of matches - agreed unanimously with the officials' decision of offside.
"We're certainly not here to try to take goals away if we don't need to, but we are pretty consistent here and all over the world in terms of how we judge these types of situations," Webb added.
"It is in line with the way the laws of the game are applied all over the world. If you stay in that offside position right in front of the goalkeeper, you're going to have an impact. And most goalkeeping people I've spoken to at least expect this to be to be penalised."
Gossip: Hammers face competition to appoint Fonseca as managerpublished at 07:43 1 May
07:43 1 May
West Ham will face competition from AC Milan for Lille manager Paulo Fonseca, with the 51-year-old seen as a potential replacement for Hammers boss David Moyes. (i Sport), external
Scotsman Moyes, 61, has attracted interest from Spartak Moscow amid uncertainty over his future at the Hammers. (Mail), external
English midfielder Callum O'Hare, 25, who is a target for Aston Villa and West Ham, has told Coventry City he will leave the club on a free transfer this summer. (Football Insider), external
Gossip: West Ham still looking at Lopeteguipublished at 07:29 30 April
07:29 30 April
West Ham's interest in former Spain manager Julen Lopetegui has been reignited, after they learned AC Milan are wavering over whether to appoint him as a replacement for Stefano Pioli. (Guardian), external
The Hammers are also keen to sign 25-year old Coventry City winger Callum O'Hare and 23-year-old Hull City centre-back Jacob Greaves this summer. (Guardian), external
Premier League clubs vote to consider spending cappublished at 18:00 29 April
18:00 29 April
Image source, Getty Images
Premier League clubs have voted in favour of adopting an anchoring economic model, which will be linked to the earnings of the bottom club (tv and prize money).
The proposed system would operate like a spending cap.
The next stage is final analysis and drafting of rules, which will potentially be put to clubs at an AGM in June.
The model will be presented to clubs and - should clubs vote in favour then - it will replace the Profit and Sustainability Rules currently in place, from the 2025-26 season onwards.
Any new element of the financial system would come in shadow next season, to fully replace PSR in 2025-26.
“We will obviously wait to see further details of these specific proposals, but we have always been clear that we would oppose any measure that would place a ‘hard’ cap on player wages," said the PFA
“There is an established process in place to ensure that proposals like this, which would directly impact our members, have to be properly consulted on.”
BBC Sport's chief football news reporter Simon Stone has been answering your questions.
Neil asked: Do you think it is time for David Moyes to move on, and who do you think should replace him if he does? Personally think it is time, as four wins in 2024 just is not good enough with our squad which he refuses to use.
Simon replied: Well, there are a lot of names being linked with the job and it is also clear a lot of fans are not having David Moyes, no matter what he has done for the club.
I can see both sides of the argument. Three successive European campaigns is unprecedented for West Ham. Top 10 Premier League finishes, which still looks likely, are not ‘the norm’. But I see fans want more attractive football.
My issue with that is, do West Ham have the resource to build the kind of squad fans want? They have attractive players, but where is the back-up when those players are either injured or not playing well? The difference between a club like West Ham and Manchester City is that City can spend £50m on a player then stick them on the bench. West Ham can’t do that. Brighton are struggling for the same reason this season.
I am not going to say ‘be careful what you wish for’ because no-one can look into the future. But putting together football teams is not as simple as it appears sometimes. The young lads have done well at Under-18 and Under-21 level but if they were good enough, they would be playing.
Your views on Saturday's gamepublished at 12:05 29 April
12:05 29 April
We asked for your views on Saturday's match between West Ham United and Liverpool.
Here are some of your answers:
West Ham fans
Harry: I'll take a draw. We should have scored maybe two or three goals in the first half, but deserved the opener through a great header by Bowen. A terrible start to the second half, conceding two goals within 20 minutes, but we made up for it with a good header by Antonio. The result keeps us in the talk for Europe.
Steve: As a team, we drop too far back and invite teams to attack us. Bowen and Kudus were the outstanding performers, in my opinion, for the Hammers but our defence was very shaky again. It was just a good job that Liverpool didn’t take their chances. It is time for Moyes to go - he has taken us as far as he can and his tactics have had their day.
John: It wasn’t a bad performance, but it was typical of the season. We just can’t seem to hang on to a lead. We have also conceded more goals than anyone outside the bottom three. For a pragmatic manager, that is poor. David Moyes has made mistakes, but it has been with a very thin squad. I'm on the fence.
Mo: Well done, Hammers. We would have gladly taken 2-2, if offered that result before the match. It shows what we can do, with disciplined defensive organisation. European qualification is still a possibility. We are not a rich club but we have brought in good players, astutely, recently. Please, please, please stay Moyes!
Liverpool fans
Seth: The team look out of energy, out of ideas, and out of any sort of cutting edge. There are too many big players missing in action, who are not standing up to be counted. Our inability to find the net and kill off games when we are in the ascendancy, coupled with a very leaky defence, meant the possible quadruple fizzled out meekly in a matter of weeks.
Mike: Liverpool have lost the plot and will be lucky to finish third in the Premier League this season. They are far too inconsistent and Klopp announcing his departure was not the wisest of moves. That alone will have affected some of the player's thoughts, especially as to where they will stand when he leaves.
Conor: I can't remember the last convincing win Liverpool had. It feels like they were only in a title race through sheer luck in matches. Klopp is maybe leaving at the right time because the club looks like it needs fresh energy at this point.
Ian: It is such a shame that Klopp may be remembered by some for his last few months and not the great work he has done over the years. The spat with Salah appears to be more fuelled by him not starting and being substituted more often, but he must score to warrant starting! Since his injury, he has not been at his best. Maturity is required by all.
'Taylor was just trying to rectify the mistake he made'published at 08:34 29 April
08:34 29 April
Image source, Getty Images
Former Premier League strikers Alan Shearer and Ian Wright have been discussing the "very strange" incident between goalkeeper Alphonse Areola and forward Cody Gakpo in the 2-2 draw between West Ham United and Liverpool on Match of the Day.
Wright gave his opinion on referee Anthony Taylor's decision: "I thought the referee had an absolute nightmare. The referee is running off, he is saying to play on, he stops, he actually tells the goalkeeper to get up and he says it a couple of times.
"Then Alphonse Areola finally gets up, the referee runs off and says to play on, and Anthony Taylor turns his back to the players. I think Gakpo should have just gone and finished that off. He just should have gone and finished it.
"But then he blows the whistle - I don't know what's happening at that point, to be honest. It is like: what is going on?"
Shearer added: "When the goalkeeper Areola has collided with the post, that is when the referee should've stopped the play and blown the whistle.
"He hasn't blown the whistle, which is an error, so then Gakpo has then tried to finish it.
"But then the referee actually calls the physios and doctors on - they are not even ready! They don't even think that Areola is injured - he is not injured.
"Anthony Taylor was just trying to rectify the mistake that he had made. It was a very messy situation caused by the referee."
Analysis: West Ham 2-2 Liverpoolpublished at 15:41 27 April
15:41 27 April
Jess Anderson BBC Sport journalist
Image source, Getty Images
West Ham have won only one of their past nine home league games and suffered a heavy defeat by Crystal Palace last time out, their second consecutive loss.
But the return of Jarrod Bowen, who missed last week's match with a back injury, proved crucial on Saturday against Liverpool with the winger heading home from the middle of a crowded area before setting up Michail Antonio's equaliser.
His 16 top-flight goals this season will surely have increased his hopes of going to the Euro 2024, with England manager Gareth Southgate watching on in London.
Eighth in the table European football remains in the Hammers' grasp.
Despite that success under David Moyes, speculation around the Hammers boss has once again emerged this week, with Sporting Lisbon boss Ruben Amorim reportedly in London to discuss replacing the Scot, although the Portuguese said on Saturday the talks were "a mistake".
West Ham 2-2 Liverpool: What Moyes saidpublished at 15:12 27 April
15:12 27 April
West Ham manager David Moyes has been talking to TNT Sports following the draw: "I think we did [bounce back well from last week]. I would have liked more than a point, we have drawn a lot [of games] and today is another. It is a good point and, to be 2-1 down and take a battering, we did great to keep going."
On the two goals: "They were really good goals. I enjoyed them. Jarrod [Bowen] is in goal scoring form. Congratulations to him on 20 goals in all competitions. I think it is a long time since someone has done that at West Ham.
"He is a fantastic player. I hope he keeps going."
On Jarrod Bowen qqualling Di Canio's 16 goals in a Premier League season: "That is where I would like the 20 goals, I would like them to be 20 Premier League goals. I have got something for him to chase in the last three games."
On Michail Antonio: "He has got fitter in the last three or four months. We missed him around November time, he got an injury with Jamaica, but he has come back, led the line well and got a few goals for us, which was missing from his game a little."
On the overall performance: "They [Liverpool] started the first half on fire, we couldn't get the ball. Everyone probably watched Everton v Liverpool and Everton were similar, compact and hard to play against. We did much of the same.
"The first goal was important for us. Great credit to the lads for the character they showed to come back from there."
West Ham 2-2 Liverpool: Key statspublished at 14:53 27 April
14:53 27 April
Here are the key facts and figures following Saturday’s game between West Ham and Liverpool in the Premier League.
Jarrod Bowen's opener (his 16th league goal of 2023-24) saw him become the joint-top goal scorer in a single Premier League campaign for West Ham United, equalling Paolo Di Canio’s haul of 16 goals in 1999-00.
Despite also leading in this game, Liverpool have won 28 points from losing positions in the Premier League this season, with only Newcastle United (34 points in 2001-02) and Manchester United (31 points in 2020-21 and 29 points in 2012-13) rescuing more points from behind in a single campaign in the competition.
The Reds have won just one of their past five Premier League games (D2 L2), keeping just a single clean sheet in their last 14 matches in the competition.
The Hammers have won just one of their past nine home Premier League games (D6 L2), going winless in five matches at London Stadium since a 4-2 win against Brentford in February.
Only Sheffield United (6) have scored more own goals than West Ham (4) in the Premier League this season, while no side has benefited from more own goals in the competition this term than Liverpool (5).
Full-time: West Ham 2-2 Liverpoolpublished at 14:31 27 April
14:31 27 April
Liverpool's Premier League title hopes seem all but over as Michail Antonio scored to rescue a point for West Ham at London Stadium.
Jarred Bowen opened the scoring just before the break when he rose highest to meet Mohammed Kudus' cross into the area, as Liverpool showed little evidence that their Merseyside derby loss in midweek had done much in the way of spurring them on.
But the visitors were much improved in the second half and Andy Robertson equalised when he scored from Luis Diaz's low pass into the penalty area.
They were then rewarded for their pressure when Cody Gakpo's effort from a corner bounced off Angelo Ogbonna, Tomas Soucek and Alphonse Areola before finding the back of the net.
It looked like they were on their way to bouncing back from back-to-back defeats in the league until Antonio's thumping header put the Hammers back on level terms.
Liverpool sit third in the table with three games remaining, two points behind leaders Arsenal, who face Tottenham on Sunday, while Manchester City are second but have two games in hand.
Liverpool's title hopes appear to be all but over, with the Reds relying on both of their title rivals to slip up to get back in the race.
Were you at the match or did you follow it from elsewhere?
Sutton's predictions: West Ham v Liverpoolpublished at 11:48 27 April
11:48 27 April
Chris Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches again this season, against a variety of guests.
For this weekend's games, he takes on Andy Bell and Steve Queralt from Ride, who support Arsenal and Tottenham.
Sutton's predictions: 1-2
Earlier this month, when Liverpool lost to Crystal Palace on the same day Arsenal were beaten by Aston Villa, it was Grand National weekend and I made an analogy about how both of them had hit the third-last fence hard, but could both still recover.
Well, Arsenal have responded really well to get their noses in front, but Liverpool stumbled badly again against Everton and, to continue the horse-racing theme, their only hope now is to hope that the Gunners and Manchester City both fall at the last.
I don't see that happening but Liverpool have just got to look after themselves now and try to beat West Ham.
Who knows what kind of Hammers performance we are going to get after all the noise around the talks they have had with Sporting Lisbon boss Ruben Amorim this week.
I know clubs have to make plans, but for that to come out the way it did that was really disrespectful to West Ham boss David Moyes when the club have not made an announcement about his future.
So, how do I call this when we don't know what the mood in their camp will be like? It's also hard to back Liverpool, because Mohamed Salah is out of form and Darwin Nunez's finishing has been so terrible.
I have a feeling the Reds will edge it but, like I say, they are out of the title race now anyway.
I'm sad about that, because I don't want Jurgen Klopp's time as Liverpool manager to end like this.
Klopp is a fierce competitor and he came in with that 'heavy-metal' brand of football... but it seems his spell at Anfield is going to finish with him just tinkering around on the piano, with nothing to play for.
Steve's prediction: 1-2
Liverpool are going to be wounded after Wednesday, but I still think they will win.
Andy's prediction: 0-2
I agree, and I am basing this on West Ham's recent form too
