Amid the hysterical overreaction to the most high-profile VAR intervention in Premier League history, amid a rush to blame the system, a question was posed by too many: what if it was the decision to sentence West Ham to relegation? It wasn’t, and not merely because Callum Wilson’s apparent equaliser against Arsenal was rightly chalked off for at least one foul on David Raya, or because it would have only earned a point, and they finished two behind Tottenham.
But some decisions condemned West Ham to the drop. Their own. Far too many of them. Next month brings the third anniversary of the Conference League victory. It could have been the platform for greater success; three years of abject choices instead followed. The unlovely, unloved London Stadium played host to Leverkusen two years ago. Lincoln will visit next season.
