Former West Ham defender Danny Gabbidon has hit out at the current Hammers side, labelling them a group of players ‘who just play when they want to at times.’
Slaven Bilic’s team fell to a humiliating defeat as they were humbled at home by Brighton on Friday night – with the Seagulls deservedly winning 3-0.
The nature of the defeat has further intensified the pressure on the beleaguered West Ham boss and it is reported he may only have two games left to save his job.
However, while many onlookers pre-match would have backed the Hammers to take all three points against newly-promoted Brighton, former Welsh centre-back Gabbidon insisted Chris Hughton’s team were probably the worst possible opposition at this moment in time.
“I think Brighton are everything at the minute that West Ham are not – they are organised, they work hard for each other,” the 2006 Hammer of the Year told the Alan Brazil Sports Breakfast.
“It was probably the worst team that West Ham could have played actually because they do a lot of things that West Ham don’t.
“If you look at West Ham they are just a bunch of players kind of put together – I am not seeing any kind of team spirit there.
“It doesn’t look like they play for the manager. It seems that when they do really need to dig a result out they find a performance but then they just go back to playing here and there.
“I think you have to look at Slaven Bilic.
“He has to take a bit of responsibility because he picks the side, he picks the tactics, he’s been involved in bringing some of those players to the club but I think he’s got a group of players there who just play when they want to at times.
“There’s not enough team spirit there and if you are a player you look at the manager and say ‘ok maybe we are not buying into some of the stuff you are doing’.
"But, off the back of that, then when you go onto the pitch you have got to want to do it for yourself as well, and do it for your teammates around you, if you are not really believing in the manager.
“I am not even seeing that.”
