Defensive Brick Wall Drags West Ham Out of Relegation Zone | OneFootball

West Ham 1-1 Manchester City

West Ham United climbed out of the relegation places after producing one of the most extraordinary defensive displays you are ever likely to see in a 1–1 draw with Manchester City.

If I have witnessed a defensive performance like that before, I genuinely can’t recall it.

The sheer effort put in by this Hammers side to repel a hugely talented Manchester City team was nothing short of incredible. For long spells it felt like wave after wave of attacks were crashing against a claret and blue wall.

City’s title-chasing forwards repeatedly ran into resistance from a defensive unit marshalled superbly by Jean-Clair Todibo, Konstantinos Mavropanos and goalkeeper Mads Hermansen during 97 relentless minutes of Premier League football at the London Stadium.

Perhaps it is slightly unfair to single out just three individuals in what was ultimately a complete West Ham team performance. Others will get their due credit in the player ratings and in the coming days. But those three were immense.

Todibo, Mavropanos And Hermansen Stand Tall

Todibo’s reading of the game was as good as anything I can remember seeing from a centre-back. His pace, anticipation, composure and calmness on the ball produced one of the finest defensive displays seen in the Premier League this season.

Remarkably, he may not even have been West Ham’s best player.

As for Konstantinos Mavropanos, I’m already looking forward to diving into the numbers tomorrow to see exactly how many duels he won when I go full geek mode with the statistics.

Even without the data it was clear he was in full Gandalf mode when dealing with Erling Haaland — effectively telling the Norwegian striker: “You shall not pass.”

Mavropanos also grabbed the crucial West Ham goal that lifted the Hammers out of the relegation zone. Not bad for a defender who was the FA Cup penalty shoot-out hero earlier in the week.

Then there was Hermansen.

Earlier this season the Danish keeper had more than a touch of the Roberto’s about him. Right now, “Magnito” Mads looks like an absolute bargain.

His willingness to catch crosses rather than punch them brought calm to the entire defence.

In truth, this was incredible stuff from a group of West Ham players who suddenly look like a band of brothers again — and that spirit could yet prove vital in the Hammers’ fight for Premier League survival. ⚒️