Soccer: West Ham skipper Noble calls for changes

(Reuters) - West Ham United must make changes on and off the pitch if they are to rebound from a disappointing Premier League campaign, captain Mark Noble has said.

The additions of striker Javier Hernandez and midfielder Marko Arnautovic last summer raised hopes that West Ham would compete for a top-half finish but poor early results led to manager Slaven Bilic being replaced by David Moyes.

Pitch invasions and ugly scenes in the stands during a loss to Burnley in March soured the season further, with fans unhappy about the club’s move to the London Stadium from Upton Park which was their home from 1904 to 2016.

“There needs to be a lot of change. I would not say no to that, on and off the pitch,” midfielder Noble told British media. “A lot of stuff needs to change. I am really hoping, and I am convinced it will during the summer.”

West Ham snapped a four-game winless run with a 2-0 victory at Leicester on Saturday. They are 15th in the league on 38 points with home games against Manchester United and Everton rounding out the season.

“If fans are coming to games and are not happy and we go 1-0 down then we feel that. There is no point lying,” added Noble.

“We need to win games and we haven’t won enough this season. That is why we are where we are. It’s been tough, I certainly don’t want another one like this.”