OPINION
West Ham had a day to forget at Anfield on Sunday as they slumped to a 4-0 defeat courtesy of Liverpool with several players submitting awful performances.
Manuel Pellegrini will no doubt be somewhat understanding that his squad are finding their rhythm after welcoming several new faces this summer but will no doubt still look to change his team for the clash against Bournemouth following their heavy defeat.
While Ryan Fredericks was among one of the side’s poorest performers, he should be kept in the team.
The speedy right-back had all his defensive flaws exploited when facing the Reds and probably couldn’t tell his left from his right after the Reds constantly charged down the right-flank in order to try and score more goals.
Despite this Fredericks isn’t one of the players who should be axed due to his latest display.
The Hammers speed demon has the potential to be a real threat for his side going forward but does need help covering his defensive vulnerabilities from whoever is playing in front of him on the right-flank.
Fredericks’ defensive issues are well-known as why he had an impressive season for Fulham in the Championship last season, he still sometimes found it tough not to be caught out by his opposition.
The Cottagers masked his flaws accordingly by ensuring whoever was on the right-side of midfield kept tracking back in order to help Fredericks with his defensive duties.
During a lot of the match against Liverpool, Michail Antonio was the player tasked with playing on the right-wing for the Hammers and regularly was nowhere to be found when Fredericks was in danger.
While the 28-year-old, who earns £70,000-a-week at the London Stadium (Source: Spotrac), may have got back on one occasion to put in a last-ditch tackle, he didn’t track back enough or get himself in the right position to help his struggling teammate.
Antonio’s display was just as awful as a lot of his teammates and when you consider that he can be deployed as a defender as well, he should have been alert to Frederick’s struggles and got involved.
With the right player in front of him, Fredericks will not only avoid being exploited at the back but will know that he will have an opportunity to charge forward down the flank in order to be an attacking threat.
If the speed machine would have done that against the Reds, then it’s clear that Antonio probably would have failed to drop back accordingly to cover him which means Fredericks couldn’t risk pushing his luck.
This means that for the Hammers’ speed demon to truly be unleashed and have a positive impact then Antonio has to be axed following his poor performance against Liverpool and replaced by a player who will not abandon his teammate in their time of need.
