DROP OF THE HARD STUFFED
Cats look dead and buried as angry fans turn on Moyes
WELCOME to the hearse of fun – it’s the doom derby, where fortune favours the grave.
Next week’s Tees-Wear tiff will be a football funeral where everyone takes a stroll down Misery Lane, and David Moyes can admire his self-fulfilling prophecy.
When Sunderland lost at home to Middlesbrough in August, Moyes (left) admitted his side were heading for another relegation battle after only TWO games of the season.
He was spot-on. The Black Cats have used up their nine lives, they are going down – and Boro will surely follow them.
Even a spirited performance against West Ham, where the hosts ended 701 minutes without a goal, turned into a requiem.
Striker Fabio Borini hinted darkly at splits in the dressing room, fans turned on Moyes, and everyone struggled to work out why Wahbi Khazri had been exiled for six months.
Khazri scored direct from a corner and was the most dynamic player on show.
Moyes and Khazri are not believed to be on the same page of the weightwatchers’ manual but, on this evidence, there is no compelling reason why the Tunisian conundrum had not started a game since October.
Midfielder Lee Cattermole, who set a new personal best by being booked after just 35 seconds, said: “It was nice to have Wahbi out there with us, he’s a great lad and, without taking it the wrong way, it shows it doesn’t really matter what he looks like.
“I carry a bit of weight as well but he hasn’t played, he’s going to get fitter, and he’s played 90 minutes for the first time in a long time.
“I don’t think the crowd have turned against the manager. No one at the club is happy with the position we’re in, but we’ve got a game in hand. We’ve just got to go to Middlesbrough and win.”
Moyes, who was booed by a section of the home crowd whenever he ventured from the dugout, insists he had never written off Khazri.
But to recall him with the Black Cats needing snookers, smacks of revising for an exam after the papers have already been marked. “I do think Wahbi’s a very good player with a lot to offer and, if he gives that level of performance, I’ll be more than happy,” said Moyes.
“His work-rate has never been an issue. We want him to be creative and make the final pass. That’s what we need him for.”
Keeper Darren Randolph’s late blunder was not the first time he has cost the Hammers points of late, but manager Slaven Bilic refused to lay blame after goals from Andre Ayew and James Collins were cancelled out by Khazri and Borini.
Bilic said: “I don’t like to change the keeper on a game-bygame basis. Darren waited a long time for his chance and he has done well for us.”
Hammers defender Jose Fonte, who adroitly policed Jermain Defoe (left), admitted: “It feels like we lost. But, if we finish in the top 10, it will have been a satisfactory season.”