It was Groundhog Day for West Ham United as they were dumped out of the Europa League in the play-off round by Romanian side Astra Giurgiu for the second season in a row.
Thanks to the Tom Hanks movie, Groundhog Day has become synonymous with an event that happens over and over again until you just have to turn off Channel Five. But traditionally, Groundhog Day marks the emergence of the groundhog from its burrow in the final stages of winter – if he emerges on a sunny day, he’ll see his own shadow and retreat back into his den; if it’s cloudy, he’ll stay out.
The legend has it that if he stays out, spring will come early. If he retreats back, winter will last an extra six weeks.
So if Thursday night was Groundhog day for the Hammers, they’re probably in a much better place than it seemed at the final whistle on Thursday night.
Last year’s early exit from Europe led to a fantastic final season at Upton Park – a Champions League spot looked possible until some poor form towards the end.
They did attain a plethora of impressive notches on their bedpost last season, however, taking four points off this weekend’s opponents Manchester City and losing only twice to the eventual top four teams.
Their very first big conquest came just days after their initial European failure.
After scraping past Birkirkara on penalties in the Europa League second qualifying round, West Ham lost 4-3 on aggregate to Astra after a 2-1 defeat in Giurgiu. Three days later, Slaven Bilic took his side to the Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal on the opening day of the Premier League season.
With a 16 year-old Reece Oxford starting at centre back, and after such a dismal European anti climax, no one gave West Ham much of a chance. But spring came early last year.
This year, they experienced their infinite loop Groundhog Day for the second time. And once again they face tough opposition only days later. This time with a trip to Manchester City.
After City’s recent performances have seen them dominate possession stats and scorelines alike, it could be a perfect storm for the Hammers: City are overwhelming favourites in light of West Ham’s traumatic week, their astonishing injury list and the fact that City seem so dominant. Fertile ground for an upset.
At the Etihad last year, City dominated the game, but two blistering first half counter attacks saw West Ham score twice, and after that they defended heroically and held on for a 2-1 victory.
But just like West Ham’s victory over Arsenal last year, the result might not be up to either of the teams on the pitch – will spring come early, or will it be six more weeks of winter?
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