The Hammers have endured their worst start to a season in their history, but should they have sold James Tomkins in the summer?
Crystal Palace’s James Tomkins celebrates scoring their first goal
In a year when West Ham United have moved away from their famous home at Upton Park where it held such memory, feeling and homage, the last thing you should be doing is selling one of your own to Crystal Palace.
The move from Upton Park to the London Stadium was never going to be a popular choice with large proportions of the West Ham faithful.
Upton Park held a special place in all Hammers supporters’ hearts and moving to a ‘soulless bowl’ as quoted by many fans, has seen United get off to the worst in their history, losing five of their opening six games in the league.
Given the hard feelings moving away from Upton Park it was important to keep as much as West Ham you could.
While they will never create what they had at the Boleyn, keeping home grown players like Mark Noble and James Tomkins would have softened the blow.
Empty seats during West Ham’s 3-0 defeat to Southampton
Losing Tomkins was more than losing a player. In a world where the disparity between those playing for the club and supporters watching from the stands grows by the day, he along with Noble filled the void.
The transitional period for The Hammers moving was always going to take time, although the ill feeling and disillusionment has grown to heights no one would have imagined.
West Ham players look dejected after Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse scored their third goal
Judging how their performing on the pitch manager Slaven Bilic could have done with Tomkins, who would have surely made a difference in the West Ham defence, which is currently being pulled to pieces in recent weeks.
Conceding four against Watford, four against West Bromwich Albion and another three on Sunday, it doesn’t bode well for a defence which is currently disjointed and lacking any kind of cohesion to stop shipping in goals.
This time last season Bilic’s men had won four of their opening six league games, with a goal difference of plus six with Tomkins featuring in five of those, the 27 year-old missed the 2-1 home defeat to Leicester City.
The Crystal Palace man has meanwhile helped The Eagles’ upturn in results of late by appearing in two of their most recent victories.
At a time when West Ham need a break just to kick start their season, they may well wonder if this is one of their biggest errors of the summer.
West Ham’s James Tomkins applauds their fans at full time
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