“The London Stadium made West Ham worse defensively. It’s an optical illusion and doesn’t have the ‘smell’ of football” Tony Gale on why his old side struggles on home soil

The London Stadium.

West Ham’s move from the Boleyn Ground to the London Stadium remains one of the most contentious stadium relocations in recent football history.

The Hammers’ previous home was steeped in history and provided the kind of edge that is only found in old-school, tightly-packed stadiums that are becoming more and more rare in this age.