INGS TINCTIVE
Danny joy for Moyes as boss toasts hitman
DAVID MOYES insisted he would be having a glass of claret after securing his 250th victory as a Premier League manager.
And, rest assured, the Hammers chief, who joins Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger on that milestone, was certain to be toasting new striker Danny Ings.
The £15million January signing grabbed a deadly double to spark a four-goal rout in 15 second-half minutes against sorry Nottingham Forest.
This second win in 12 league games lifted the Londoners out of the drop zone – and ensured Moyes remains in a job.
The Scot said: “I’m not coming here with a bottle of champagne but I’m going to enjoy this. I’ll have a glass of wine. And why not? I’ve had enough bad nights.
“Every win is important. If you don’t get the first, you might not get a second. And if you don’t win your 250th, you might not get a 251st. There’s been a lot of noise outside but none behind the scenes. I’ve had great support from the owners here.”
As for full-debutant Ings, Moyes said: “Danny bundled them in. They weren’t pure strikes but that’s what you want from a striker.”
Moyes’ matchday programme notes contained a rallying call to the fans to stick with his team.
Certainly, the mood was upbeat after a rousing round of pre-match applause in memory of Hammers legend Bobby Moore, who passed away 30 years ago. That ignited a lightning opening from the hosts but, despite dominating the first half, it remained goalless.
Ings looked a rusty Iron at that stage, missing three great chances, including a simple header with the goal at his mercy.
Forest, five points better off at the start, have the worst top-flight goals record on the road, having scored just three times. It was easy to see why.
Fears at the interval that Moyes’ men would pay the price for not finding the net while in complete charge evaporated when Ings broke the deadlock after 70 minutes.
Barely a minute later, his knee made it 2-0. The next was the best of the lot.
Fittingly, it was West Ham’s modernday leader Declan Rice who curled in a peach to send the London
Stadium wild. And there was
WEST HAM: Fabianski 7 (Areola (69) 7);
Coufal 6 (Cresswell (46) 7), Ogbonna 7,
Aguerd 7, Johnson 7; Bowen 8, Soucek
7, Rice 8, Paqueta 8 (Fornals (83) 6),
Benrahma 7; Ings 8 (Antonio (83) 7)
Navas 7; Williams 7,
Worrall 6, Felipe 7, Lodi 6 (Toffolo (77)
5); Johnson 6 (Surridge (86) 6), Colback 6,
Selvey 6 (Ayew (67) 6), Freuler 6; Gibbs-White 6,
Wood 6 (Lingard (77) 5)
Danny Ings – New Hammers hitman came up trumps with quickfire deadly double.
Jarred Gillett 7 still time for a fourth as substitute Michail Antonio scored with his very first touch.
In stark contrast to Moyes, Forest boss Steve Cooper was fuming at his players’ pathetic collapse. The Midlands outfit are only four points clear of the drop zone and Cooper said: “We’re really disappointed. We could feel the tension in the stadium and we spoke about wanting to get that to turn.
“I thought we were okay at the interval. But what happened between the first and third goals was hard to comprehend.
“That period was a worry and unacceptable.”