Unbeaten in 2015 and flying high in the Premier League, West Ham entered this game as firm favourites to progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup. But Bristol City proved why they are up near the summit of League One with an impressive display which certainly gave us a fright. The Hammers managed to edge over the line courtesy of a late goal from super sub Diafra Sakho on his return.
Bristol City started much the better side as we looked sluggish in the early exchanges. The lack of pace in midfield was clearly evident and Bristol City’s playmaker Luke Freeman posed a great threat with his pace in the middle. Jay Emmanuel-Thomas looked competent on the ball – surely he is better than a League One player. Matt Smith was causing all sorts of aerial difficulties. We were twice saved by clearances off the line from his headers; one by Mark Noble and the other by Andy Carroll. After the introduction of Amalfitano and Sakho, the improvement was noticeable. The latter was making his return from a back injury and demonstrated why he is the club’s top goalscorer this season with an exquisite flick over a Bristol City defender before rattling the bar with his shot.
The game was edging towards a replay and if any team looked likely to progress it was our League One opponents. But Carroll showed great strength and perseverance to get to the by-line and swing a cross to the back post with his weaker right foot. None other than Diafra Sakho was lurking hungrily to crane his neck impressively and direct the ball into an empty net to give us a late lead in the tie. Bristol City pressed on dangerously again but the closest they could come was a looping header from Smith which dropped just wide – Adrian looked to have it covered. West Ham put on a less than impressive, lackadaisical showing against a Bristol City side that raised their game for such a big occasion and we scraped an undeserved late clincher to knock them out.
Having said all this, we must take positives from the result. No, it was not pretty and no, we were not at our best but we have progressed to the fifth round of the FA Cup. Bristol City are in great form and after seeing both Chelsea and Manchester City losing their home ties against Bradford and Middlesbrough respectively, this victory is perhaps put into perspective. Cambridge held Manchester United and Bolton earned a replay against Liverpool at Anfield. The most important thing for us was to ensure our place in the next round and with so many big club casualties, we are now fourth favourites to win the whole thing according to the bookmakers. A challenging trip to West Brom awaits us but it is a very winnable game against a side that might prefer to focus on survival in the Premiership primarily.
The magic of the FA Cup was very much alive in a mad weekend of drama and upsets so we have done well to avoid joining this list by sneaking through at the expense of Bristol City. We now sit two wins away from a semi-final tie at Wembley and who knows what might happen from there? But the most important positive to take from the game is the return of Diafra Sakho. He now has 10 goals in just 16 appearances for West Ham – 4 of which have come from the bench. If we can keep him fit for the remainder of the season then we have a very good chance of success in this year’s FA Cup and stand in good stead for an elevated league position too.
