Sky Sports pundit Stuart Pearce has graded West Ham’s weekend performance as a “C+” after they slumped to a disappointing draw against bottom of the table side Crystal Palace.
Slaven Bilic’s men let a two-goal lead slip through their grasp at Selhurst Park to draw 2-2 on Saturday afternoon in a result which former Hammer Pearce describes as “bittersweet”.
Summer signing Javier Hernandez and Andre Ayew put the visitors in the driving seat in the first-half before Palace got back in the game through a Luka Milivojevic penalty and a last-gasp equaliser from Wilfried Zaha.
Bilic would have been extremely hurt by the manner of the defeat as Angelo Obgonna needlessly conceded the penalty and Michail Antonio gifted Palace possession instead of running the ball into the corner and wasting time.
The point leaves the Hammers in 16th position in the league table just one point adrift of the relegation zone with ten matches played.
Expressing his thoughts on the Sky Sports website, Pearce believes that the Hammers should be satisfied that they earned a point away from home.
“They’ll be disappointed that they haven’t taken three points and sealed Crystal Palace’s fate in the bottom three, at least until Christmas, and pushed themselves to just under halfway in the league, that would have been ideal,” he wrote.
“But to give a goal away in the 96th minute is a real sickener but a point on the road would be important for them as well.
“Another bittersweet result.”
OPINION
Following their stunning comeback against bitter rivals Tottenham in the midweek Carabao Cup tie, West Ham would have been desperate to get back on the track in the league. They performed well in the first-half but individual mistakes cost them in the end and although it was a tough pill to swallow, Palace certainly deserved their point. Goalkeeper Joe Hart was arguably West Ham’s best performer on the day which emphasis how much pressure the hosts put them under. Although Stuart Pearce believes that a point away from home should be seen as a decent result, the Hammers should and will not take any positives from this match given the circumstances. They need to dust themselves down and prepare for a daunting game against Liverpool next weekend at the London Stadium.