The general build-up to Everton – West Ham this weekend has had one common theme best summarised by BBC Sport’s take on the match, is this the game that defines Marco Silva’s job?
The Toffees manager’s job hangs in the balance based on the outcome of this game, with Everton losing their last four games in the Premier League and currently finding themselves in the relegation zone in the table, and another defeat for the Merseyside club could see Silva axed.
Indeed, a potential job-saving game is always going to take up the main headlines, but for West Ham, this fixture at Goodison Park could prove to be more important to them in the long-term than Everton.
With West Ham currently above the likes of Manchester United and Tottenham in the league table, three points this weekend could be another fantastic boost to squad morale and the general mood surrounding the club, and it will also be another big step forward in Manuel Pellegrini’s audacious but seemingly realistic goal of taking the Hammers to European football as said to the club’s official website.
If results go West Ham’s way on top of collecting three points on Merseyside, the Irons could find themselves in a European spot in the Premier League nine games into the season, an achievement not many supporters would have predicted come to the start of the campaign in August following a 5-0 thrashing from Manchester City.
Pellegrini’s claims about achieving a continental finish with the Hammers might have seemed ludicrous a few months ago, but results have been promising so far this season, and a win at a difficult ground against an Everton side in desperate need of three points will be a good test of West Ham’s desire to finish as high as they can in the table, and potentially reach European football.
