It has been quite a mixed season for Mohamed Diame so far, with the Senegalese international unable to hold down a regular place in the side, and used in various positions when he has played.
Whilst his form, particularly in the first half of the season, was pretty poor compared to the standards he set last campaign, he has still made some important contributions and cameo roles for the team. But the question remains, what does the future hold for Diame at West Ham?
This season, he began playing in his usual central midfield role, but was then pushed out wide to the right wing due to the sudden emergence of Ravel Morrison. After the fantastic 3-0 victory over Spurs at White Hart Lane, Diame formed part of the inventive 4-6-0 formation for a few games thereafter, although the performance wasn’t replicated. Here, he would exchange roles with the other midfielders, switching between attack and defence.
All of this changing about probably contributed to his inconsistent form in this first part of the campaign, although he certainly didn’t play as well as he was capable of overall.
Gone were those driving runs down the middle of the pitch that used to terrify opposition defences last season, and too often he looked like he simply didn’t want to be on the pitch or out wide on the wing. Despite this, he has still made some worthwhile contributions to the cause, for example scoring the vital opener in the win over Fulham in November, and of course supplying the cross for Modibo Maiga’s winner against Spurs in the Capital One Cup in December.
More recently, and during the brilliant winning streak of February, Diame hasn’t been able to gain a starting place, with a central midfield trio of Kevin Nolan, Mark Noble and Matthew Taylor working well together, and Matthew Jarvis and Stewart Downing performing well on the wings. Diame has still come off the bench in some of those games – most notably against Norwich City where he set up and scored to win the Hammers the match 2-0. Yet this has been invariably on the left wing to replace Matt Jarvis, with new signing Antonio Nocerino seemingly the preferred back-up in central midfield.
Going forward this makes it unclear what role manager Sam Allardyce sees for Diame at West Ham. This time last season he would have been an automatic pick in the heart of the midfield, but now he is not a guaranteed starter and when he does play, it is often in the wing position, which his game is not really suited for.
Bearing in mind that last season, Diame was being touted as a potential target for the likes of Arsenal, will he accept a bit part role in the squad, coming off the bench or filling in midfield as and where he is needed? Will he push for a transfer in the summer because of it? Or will he eventually push his way back as an automatic pick into the middle of the park, as was the case last campaign?
Let me know what you think should happen with Diame.
