‘Reality Is’ – West Ham Delivered Quality Show Admits Ex-Derby County Star | OneFootball

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Former Derby County captain Shaun Barker has highlighted West Ham United‘s quality following the Rams’ defeat to the Hammers at the London Stadium.

Across their five league outings, John Eustace has guided the Rams to just one victory, a 2-0 success over Portsmouth.

At the weekend, the Pride Park outfit made the trip to the London Stadium, where they were handed a bruising 3-0 defeat by West Ham United in the Championship.

The recently relegated side had three different names on the scoresheet, with Leeds United loanee Joel Piroe among them as he opened the scoring for the Hammers.

Barker reflected on the threat posed by the Irons in transition, noting that Derby County were left vulnerable when committing players forward.

He felt his side were too wasteful in possession in the final third, allowing West Ham to punish those mistakes and carve out chances, while also recognising the quality the Hammers displayed across the 90 minutes as being a reality check.

Barker said on the Derby Debrief (6:45): “But as we mentioned on the transition on the break, they had men going forward.

“We were a little bit sloppy with the ball.

“If you give it up cheaply in that final third, they can punish you.

“They did with the two chances.

“And the reality is you saw their quality over the 90 minutes.”

The lacklustre start has left the Rams 20th in the Championship table, just one point above the relegation zone and already looking over their shoulders.

They have an opportunity to put that poor run behind them on Wednesday when West Brom visit Pride Park, although the Baggies arrive in considerably better shape, having suffered just one defeat in their opening five league games.

Eustace will know a response is needed quickly, with another setback likely to increase the pressure as Derby County continue to find themselves fighting at the wrong end of the table.