Angelo Ogbonna has urged celebrity West Ham supporter James Corden to rally behind the team.
Corden, host of The Late Late Show, has been a constant critic of his beloved West Ham this season.
The Gavin & Stacey creator slammed the side as “Avram Grant bad” on the back of their 4-0 defeat to Everton midweek and Corden was a bag of nerves when manager David Moyes pit his wits against those of Pep Guardiola this weekend.
I don’t remember the last time I felt this nervous or hopeless before a match. 🙈
— James Corden (@JKCorden) December 3, 2017
But Corden received some welcome hope when centre-half Ogbonna opened the scoring against the high-flying Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon, only for the Hammers to be pegged back by second-half goals from Nicolas Otamendi and David Silva.
And while the result eventually went City’s way, the fight shown by the visitors at stages will have inspired some optimism among away supporters for the relegation battle that lies ahead.
Shortly after the full-time whistle, Ogbonna took to Twitter to encourage Corden to throw his support behind the Hammers, rather than repeatedly ridicule the players, manager and board.
Don't lose your hope @JKCorden. We have shown we can can play head-to-head vs the first one in the league. We will go up through the standings. If you come back in town for the holidays, come see us at the Stadium. We Irons stick together through good times and bad times. #COYI pic.twitter.com/189BImR0Cl
— Angelo Ogbonna (@OgbonnaOfficial) December 3, 2017
Love this! #COYI!!!! https://t.co/JszDG40vQ3
— James Corden (@JKCorden) December 3, 2017
Moyes admitted he was disappointed by the outcome of the game and suggested that a point might have been a fairer representation of the 90 minutes.
“We’re gutted that we lost it,” Moyes said. “We played against a really good side and I thought for long periods we frustrated them.
“Arguably we had the best chances in the first half.
“We’re disappointed not to have taken anything from the game but we’re really proud of the players.
“Eventually Manchester City will force you back. We weren’t good enough at keeping the ball but the defensive set-up was brilliant.
“So many of their players can cause you problems but in the main our players did really well.”
