West Ham star fumes at David Moyes over' 'awful' decision in opening game
West Ham goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski has hit out at manager David Moyes for the way his relegation to second choice was handled.
Fabianski has been Moyes' first pick for much of the boss' second stint at the London Stadium, missing just six Premier League games over the last three seasons. That changed for this year's opener against Bournemouth, though.
Alphonse Areola, who played in the Hammers' run to Europa Conference League glory last season, took the former Arsenal keeper's place for the trip to the south coast. Moyes' team ended up drawing 1-1, with the French international beaten by Dominic Solanke late on.
Since the game, Fabianski has spoken up about the last week, and how he learned he was not going to start against the Cherries. An option to extend the 38-year-old's contract was exercised over the summer, but he doesn't appear to have taken kindly to losing his starting spot.
“I took the news awfully," Fabianski told Canal+, as translated by Polish media. “Being honest, first of all, it was a massive shock. Second of all, the information made me angry.
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"I wasn’t mentally ready for something like this. The way the situation was handled feels weird to me.
"As you can probably feel my pain, all I will say is that through my work with the club, the coaching staff and the manager I deserved the situation to unfold in a much different way than how it happened and on Thursday. I know it’s just my subjective opinion, but I feel like I should’ve been treated better in that specific situation.”
Have West Ham been harsh on Fabianski? Have your say in the comments section
Alphonse Areola was preferred to Fabianski for the opener (Getty Images)Fabianski, who joined the Hammers from Swansea in 2018, was involved in the club's pre-season programme before losing his starting spot. He was selected for the 3-2 victory over Spurs in Australia, while Fabianski and Areola played 45 minutes each in the more recent friendly defeat against Rennes.
“I don’t think there is a set age [to retire]," he told club media in July. There is a common opinion that once you reach a certain age then everyone expects you to be thinking about retirement.
"I don’t approach that in that way. I am just enjoying my football. I’m not setting an age. I believe I’ve still got a few good years in me and I’m physically in a good state.”
It remains to be seen whether Areola's selection in the league means Moyes will be tempted to use Fabianski as his cup keeper this season. The Conference League success means West Ham go straight into the group stages for this season's Europa League, where they are in pot one and will avoid the likes of 2021 winners Villarreal and last season's finalists Roma.
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