OPINION
West Ham midfielder Edimilson Fernandes is at a very pivotal stage of his career as he is at an age where he must finally start delivering the goods on a regular basis.
It is no longer good enough to just have the potential to be a gamechanger, he must start to prove that he’s is more than raw potential now that he is 22-years-old.
The Hammers midfielder turned 22 in April and will no doubt be aware that in order to continue progressing as a player he will need to be able to secure a regular place in Manuel Pellegrini’s first-team.
Fernandes has been inconsistent during his outings for the Hammers ever since arriving from Swiss side FC Sion in 2016 but there have been times when his talent has been there for all to see.
The 22-year-old had an injury hit 2017/18 campaign and during the 16 appearances he was fit enough to make, he was utilised in several different positions as David Moyes didn’t have a whole lot of midfield options to choose from.
Fernandes featured as an attacking midfielder, left-sided midfielder, right-sided midfielder and as a central midfielder in order to help Moyes be able to field a capable team.
The versatile talent who earns £30,000-a-week at the club (Source: Spotrac) can deliver the goods for the Hammers if he is able to settle into one position and stay injury free.
Fernandes has previously shown that due to his neat passing ability, knack for shielding the ball and his willingness to work hard for the team that he is a player who could help the team achieve success if he was just able to be consistent.
The 3-0 victory over Southampton in March saw the midfielder play 81 minutes of that game and put in a fantastic performance to help his side secure an important win.
Pellegrini’s side could therefore benefit from having him in the squad and the experienced manager’s guidance could enable Fernandes to improve as he is still learning his craft.
However in order for Fernandes to get the opportunity to deliver the goods for his side, he needs to save himself from Pellegrini’s axe by proving himself in pre-season.
Claret & Hugh report that 22-year-old is potentially one of the players who could exit the club this summer as Pellegrini and the director of football Mario Husillos realise that they need to trim the squad if they successfully sign all the players they want.
Therefore the 22-year-old who has previously appeared at times to be a player worth keeping must save himself from the Hammers’ chopping block and submit the displays he is capable of in 2018/19 in order to help his side.
