Former West Ham United striker Jermain Defoe expects the Hammers to get their season back on track after a tricky 2022/23 campaign so far.
After 21 games, the Hammers find themselves 16th in the Premier League table and just one point clear of the relegation zone, having finished in the top seven in each of the last two league campaigns.
The Hammers have slowly started to get back on track, with a win and two draws in their last four Premier League matches, holding Champions League hopefuls Newcastle United to a 1-1 draw at St James’ Park on Saturday evening.
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Defoe, who came through West Ham’s academy and scored 41 times in 105 Hammers appearances between 1999 and 2004, thinks that the Hammers’ struggles have been down to confidence and has backed them to get back to their best.
"I think last season, West Ham were brilliant, got to a stage where their priorities were obviously in the Europa League [and] competing in that competition," Defoe told football.london .
"It’s obviously a tough competition, some amazing teams, did really well, everyone was raving about David Moyes, the manager. He just signed a new contract and all that stuff. This season, it’s a little bit more difficult, I think probably confidence, but there’s still a long way to go. I think they’re still good enough to go on a good run and obviously my former club and I played under David Moyes, I like him as a coach.
"I would like to see them obviously do well and progress and get a few results. But the Premier League is such a tough league, there’s no easy games and you’re going to get points in the season where the teams isn’t playing great and you’re not getting results because every game is hard.
"Every season, every team, you get different players coming in. Tactically, managers improve, so it’s difficult but I still feel like they’re good enough to go on a good run."
One issue for West Ham on the pitch has been scoring goals. In 21 league games so far, the Hammers have mustered just 18 goals so far, making them the fifth-lowest scorers in England’s top-flight. To combat that, the club spent £12million in the January transfer window to add firepower in the form of former England forward Danny Ings from Aston Villa.
Since Ings’ arrival, he has made two substitute appearances against Everton and Newcastle, having suffered a minor knee injury in between the two. But having scored six league goals this season, despite only eight starts in the Premier League, his record has been impressive.
Defoe, who is ninth on the Premier League’s all-time top scorers list with 162 goals, rates Ings highly and thinks he could be a big difference for West Ham as they approach the business end of the season, joking that he loves playing in claret and blue, having done so for former clubs Burnley and Villa.
"He’s top, what a signing that is," said Defoe. "He likes that kit doesn’t he, Danny Ings? Burnley, Villa and now, he likes that colour kit.
"I think he will do well. He is someone who is a top, top player, top, top player, goalscorer. He will score a lot of goals there. That is the signing they need I think, I think that is the one and now they have got him in, I think he could be the difference.
"I know that is a lot of pressure on him but when you are a number nine, that’s what it is. I think he could be the difference."
The form this season has led to pressure on manager Moyes, who at times has been heavily linked with being sacked after over three years in charge during his second spell at the club.
West Ham’s board have stuck with Moyes as manager despite their struggles, and a run of three wins and a draw in their last five games has shown signs that a corner is starting to turn.
Defoe knows all about Moyes, having thrived under him while he played under the Hammers boss at Sunderland, scoring 15 goals in 40 appearances under Moyes for the Black Cats. He has backed his former boss to succeed and get West Ham back on track, as they slowly have been recently.
"Yes, I’m going to say that because he’s obviously a manager I played for, I’m not going to sit here and be like ‘no’ because why would I? I wouldn’t do that," Defoe said when asked if Moyes is the right man to get West Ham back on track.
"And, it’s not just me being biased, actually at one point last season, if we’re being honest, we were raving about Moyes and the job he has done there; so you don’t just become a bad manager overnight, you don’t just become a bad coach because not too long ago, in terms of signings it was 'Moyesy, what do you want?'
"To do that well in the Europa League like they did and in the league, but at some stage, because in the Europa League they felt like ‘we could win this.’ Yes, he’s an experienced manager."
Defoe has started to follow in the footsteps of former boss Moyes as the 40-year-old now embarks on the start of his own coaching career.
Former West Ham striker Defoe is back at another of his former club, Tottenham Hotspur, working as a coach in Spurs’ academy, having retired as a player in March 2022, shortly after rejoining Sunderland. To follow his coaching journey, Defoe is the focus of a new BBC 5 Live Podcast, Jermain Defoe: Outside the Box.
Speaking out ahead of the launch of the 12-episode series, Defoe said he is excited to have been able to take part in the opportunity, which saw him speak to some of his former coaches and players, including Harry Redknapp, David Pleat and Chris Hughton.
"I just think it was a good idea and it was an opportunity for me to try and speak to managers I played for to pick their brains and sit down and speak about managing and coaching," Defoe said at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
"What to expect, the difficulties, the ups and downs and how they deal with different situations because it’s obviously all new to me and I’m just getting into it.
"But at the same time, it was nice going around and just seeing the managers that I played for and just having a chat really."
Defoe is thoroughly enjoying the start to his coaching career back at former club Spurs. The ex-Hammers forward said he is inspired by trying to help young players reach their full potential and hopes it can build him for a future career in management at the highest level.
"I’ve loved it, it’s so good and I’m working with some amazing young players, good people, people at the club that want to help me," added Defoe.
"I think that helps as well because it doesn’t matter if you’ve been a top player, you go into an environment, you have to look forward to going to work, working with people that you know, familiar faces.
"I’ve spent nine years as a player here and that’s it really and just learning from the coaches that are at the club and then that’s it really, just taking as much from those coaches as I can. I’ve said that when my badges are completed, hopefully at some stage, if I do get an opportunity, then at least I’m ready."
The Jermain Defoe: Outside the Box podcast from BBC Radio 5 Live is available from Thursday 9 February, with episodes being released weekly over the next 12 weeks.
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