_‘Hanging on until January_” is a pretty fair summary of [West Ham’s](https://www.claretandhugh.info/west-ham-fan-protest-mobilises-for-newcastle-visit/) predicament now, mired in the relegation zone and with one solitary point in the last four games. However it isn’t just the points tally – the mode of play and the seeming readiness to capitulate without so much as a whimper, as displayed in the third minute against Leeds is just as worrying.
The [_standard.co.uk_](https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/west-ham-nuno-transfers-b1255313.html), however, somewhat contentiously claims that “_Nuno is learning, and fast. He admitted he got it wrong by not starting an out-and-out striker against Leeds.”_
Of course, the small point of West Ham _not owning_ a decent ‘out and out striker’ is another matter entirely.
_Standard journalists claim Nuno is “learning, and fast!”_
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**Unlike** just about every West Ham fan who watched the Leeds game on Sky, the _Standard_ journalists claim that Nuno is _justified_ in his experimentation_:_
_“Nuno cannot be blamed for trying to experiment with his team, but so far, he has yet to get any of the big decisions right; playing full-backs out of position, bringing Andy Irving back in from the cold, or neglecting to name a striker at all in his starting lineup….West Ham need new players and fresh impetus in midfield, defence, and attack. This is a team and a squad that looks resigned to their fate.”_
What the report fails to pick up on is the slide downhill since Espirito Santo’s first game: It seems blindingly obvious that he needs to _retrace his steps and revert to the eleven – minus injured duo Fullkrug and Mavropanos_– who started that game and produced a creditable draw.
Instead of the horrible, mad-professor like experimentation, the very solution he seeks is right under his nose:
The eleven who started against Everton, in case you need reminding, included a midfield trio of **Magassa, Fernandes and Paqueta,** So much for Nuno ‘learning, and fast’. More a case of heading back to the Everton white-board and reminding himself of what worked.