West Ham boss Sam Allardyce could face the sack after pathetic defeat

The competition and the place it holds in store at Wembley are of incidental importance. It was, instead, the night that Sam Allardyce will surely look back upon as the point of no return on this chapter of his career.

The concession of six goals did not carry the humiliation of shipping that number at Nottingham Forest three days earlier, but it was a wretched occasion which reached its nadir 15 minutes before the end. That was the moment the West Ham manager stood in the rain on the edge of his technical area, facing off the supporters who hurled the words “F*** off Sam Allardyce” , again and again.

He was helpless. He has staked this season on players like Joe Cole and Stewart Downing – experienced internationals with 90 England caps between them – who are required for such occasions but who instead vanished into the wings. The only change that worked for Allardyce was the replacement trousers he pulled on during the half time interval. At least they kept his legs dry.

It can’t be said that no player felt Allardyce’s indignity. Mark Noble, whose attempts to hold the line in front of defence were wretched, hurled the expletive his team’s fans had used at the City supporters who taunted him on his own departure, and disappeared immediately down the tunnel. The Spanish goalkeeper, Adrian, was called upon to make half a dozen fine saves, as City took their extraordinary home goals tally to 59 in 15 games.

But the laconic way the opposition drifted through West Ham’s midfield like a training pitch and exposed the technical deficiencies of Allardyce’s defence was pitiful.

The Independent