There were only 22 minutes on the clock when James Maddison limped off, giving Gareth Southgate an injury scare before England head off for the World Cup, but by that stage the Leicester playmaker had already done his bit to loosen David Moyes’s grip on the West Ham job.
Maddison’s seventh goal of the season arrived early, handing Leicester the impetus to edge further into mid-table, and made it impossible not to wonder if West Ham’s players are still listening to their manager. That lingering sense of the Moyes project growing stale is gathering momentum. Far too many flaws were evident during another lacklustre display from West Ham, whose habit of starting games slowly has left them a point above the bottom three, and while the break for Qatar gives Moyes breathing space there will be people wondering if he should still be in charge when the season resumes next month.
