By Conor Hogan
**West Ham slumped to another defeat last night, as Brentford cruised to a 2-0 win at London Stadium and the team selection caused a lot of controversy.**
The Hammers put in a truly embarassing display during Nuno’s first home game as manager and were fortunate to only concede twice. However, the Irons’ boss put his side in a losing position from the first minute, by picking a starting XI that seemed to baffle West Ham fans.
The 51-year-old started a team that included Ollie Scarles, Andy Irving and Jean-Clair Todibo, players that have played zero minutes under the new boss. Additionally, he chose not to use Callum Wilson, the Hammers’ only fit senior striker.
The starting XI and subs made little sense – especially for Nuno, who seemed to quickly recognise West Ham’s strengths in his first two games as boss. This didn’t feel like a Nuno Espírito Santo team.
One of last night’s talking points was the organised boycott of the game at London Stadium in protest against West Ham’s Board of Directors. With this in mind, could it be possible that owner David Sullivan had some influence over the team that started the night?
Sullivan is no stranger to involving himself in first-team plans. As reported by The Athletic in September, he strongly disagreed on Graham Potter’s XI against Manchester United in May, threatening the boss with the sack if he did not win at Old Trafford that day.
It may seem a stretch to suggest David Sullivan had such influence last night, but given how involved he remaind in transfers during the employment of Kyle Macaulay and Tim Steidten, and given the context of last night’s protest against the Board, it’s certainly a possibilty.
At the very least, it would explain some strange decisions the manager made last night.