#whuwol — Public Fediverse posts on home.social

Henry Winter 🤖 @[email protected] · 2026-04-11 · 05:07 UTC

“You can always have quality but you need grit and desire and a will to win through the whole squad,” Jarrod Bowen told Sky Sports about the spirit at West Ham after beating Wolves. Somebody needs to tell some of Tottenham players that. Spurs coaches have come and gone this season, Frank and Tudor, paying the price for performances, but the players have to take responsibility as Bowen and his team-mates do.

Spurs players need to show that grit and desire. Some like Archie Gray do but too few. Roberto De Zerbi has made a good impression, by all accounts, and Spurs will doubtless look more organised at Sunderland but their survival hopes are down to the players. To dare is to do something about it.

Do they truly realise their predicament? Spurs have one point from a possible 21. They haven’t won a league game in 2026. West Ham have now won five. A glance at the table, now showing Spurs in the drop zone, should surely shake them up. A look at West Ham’s gutsy display against Wolves, the Taty and Dinos show, should wake Spurs players up to the threat of the drop.

Cristian Romero should note Dinos Mavropanos’ commitment levels, his grit and desire, rising to the challenge over the past few months when his team needed him most. From mistake-maker to responsibility-taker, even goal-taker. Mavropanos is all about the team. Romero is a good player but occasionally lets the team down with some of his erratic decision-making. You can't rely on him - and he's captain.

You can rely on West Ham's captain. Bowen sets the tone. Leader, winger, pressing machine, assist-maker (2x v Wolves), grit and desire. Crysencio Summerville has quality with his ability to manoeuvre the ball at pace into danger zones but also the right attitude. He fights for the team. Grit and desire and quality.

Spurs were rightly criticised in January for not strengthening a squad patently lacking grit and desire and also numbers (given injuries). West Ham brought in Disasi, Pablo and Taty, players that Spurs recruitment decision-makers might have sniffed at. Bit limited, not “quality”, not Spurs “profile”.

But they have brought grit and desire: Disasi (£1.7m loan fee) throwing himself into blocks, the link-up play and work ethic of Pablo (£20m) and the tireless Taty (£26m) providing an outlet and now goals.

Given that both Pablo and Taty are on 4½+1 deals, the cost for the trio’s involvement in this crucial period in West Ham’s season, in arguably their recent history, is (very) roughly £15m including wages. That’s a modest price to pay if they help keep West Ham up. Old and new, West Ham are showing grit and desire, in the dug-out too.

Their head coach Nuno, a man guided by heart and head, embodies and accentuates that grit and desire. Nuno’s a fighter. He was growing up, overcoming adversity, in his playing career and in management, often doubted. But always showing grit and desire. Nuno's old club, Spurs, need to learn that fast, start to fight, starting with this tricky trip to the Stadium of Light. #THFC #WHUFC #WHUWOL

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