West Ham are fast sinking in quicksand as Moyes looks set for the exit after 2-0 defeat by Brentford

By Alessandro Schiavone at London Stadium

West Ham United 0-2 Brentford

West Ham boss David Moyes is staring down the barrel of a second London Stadium exit after his flops slipped to a disastrous 2-0 home defeat against Brentford.

In football you’re either pitied or envied. And while last year many sides were inspired by the Hammers’ meteoric rise, things are now alarmingly falling apart.

Last season's Europa League semi-finalists are now hovering only one point above the relegation zone having played a game more than Wolves, Forest and Southampton. And only two points separate the four bottom clubs. If the trio pick up three wins, the Hammers are bottom.

Yet Moyes's players attitude and application could yet again not be faulted. The most pressing problem is the lack of conviction in the penalty area. The shortage of confidence. Either side of half-time the East Londoners produced a flurry of chances. but couldn't beat Raya or the post. With less than five minutes played, Declan Rice's effort bouncing off the outside of the post was an indicator of how cursed the evening was going to be.

Yet plenty of faces at the London Stadium were optimistic that the tide was finally about to turn. West Ham were dominant and the sheer ease with which they opened Brentford up suggested that things were coming together. But after both Craig Dawson and Jarrod Bowen also missed chances, the old, familiar ghosts seemed to reappear.

Shockingly not even Rice’s leadership and Paqueta’s inventiveness could change the direction of gravity.

Before Ivan Toney, who could be hit with a lengthy ban over allegations of 232 betting breaches, pounded on the rebound after Lukasz Fabianski had produced a top-draw save to keep out Christian Norgaard.

And their miseries were compounded when Josh Dasilva slotted past the former Polish international to stun an already-dejected fanbase.

Former AC Milan midfielder Paqueta's attempts to reopen the game before heading for the dressing room suffered a huge blow as his shot on the turn missed the target by an inch.

Last season, when almost everything seemed to go Moyes’ men’s way, it may have nestled in, just like Dawson’s 82nd minute header which David Raya excellently tipped over.

Equally, Michail Antonio’s 77th minute scuffed shot tells you everything you need to know about the club’s current state of affairs.

The club is in quicksand and has to get back to the surface as soon as possible.

And while Moyes can improve a team or get it out of jail after taking over, his record when it comes to arresting the slide of a team he's been managing for a while doesn’t speak for him.

Tonight luck was simply not on West Ham’s side as they have now fallen to five defeats in a row.

The only certainty is that Moyes needs plenty of it to still be in the dugout for the trip to Leeds next Wednesday.

Line-ups

West Ham

1 Fabianski- 3 Cresswell-5 Coufal-7 Scamacca-11 Paqueta-15 Craig Dawson-20 Jarrod Bowen-21 Ogbonna-22 Benrahma-33 Emerson-41 Rice

Brentford

1 Raya-3 Henry-5 Pinnock-6 Norgaard- 8 Jensen- 10 Dasilva- 13 Zanka- 16 Mee-17 Toney-19 Mbeumo- 30 Roerslev