OPINION
Friday’s 1-0 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion will have given West Ham United manager Manuel Pellegrini plenty to chew upon.
Chief amongst those must be the future of the left back position. Current incumbent Arthur Masuaku visibly struggled in the first half at the AMEX Stadium and is looking more and more like a liability every week.
It should be said that the Frenchman, on a reported £40,000-per-week at the London Stadium [Source: Spotrac], is not a bad player. In fact, going forward he is a terrific asset to this Hammers team. But his primary responsibility as a left back remains to defend, and his shortcomings there have been well documented during his time in East London.
Masuaku was absolutely dire against the Seagulls, going missing for Glenn Murray’s goal and failing to deal with the threat of Anthony Knockaert throughout.
Pablo Zabaleta gave a fine performance on the other side of the pitch, showcasing the gulf in class between the former Manchester City man and the 24-year-old Masuaku.
Despite his suspect defending the former Olympiacos man has continually been preferred to England international Aaron Cresswell by Pellegrini.
The manager’s insistence on playing Masuaku is becoming increasingly baffling, as he has a superior option available to him on his substitute’s bench.
The former Ipswich Town man, standing at 5ft 6in [Source: Transfermarkt], has shown in the past that he can perform to an extremely high level in the Premier League – and after Masuaku’s troubles, he must be fuming if he fails to start after the international break.
He is equally adept going forward as he is at the back, something that certainly cannot be said for Masuaku. His delivery from the left hand side is usually impeccable, while his dead ball ability is a valuable asset that West Ham have been missing dearly this term.
The Brighton game has to be the final straw for Pellegrini and Cresswell must return to the starting line up against Tottenham Hotspur after the international break.
If the Chilean continues with his current selection then Masuaku will get eaten alive by the likes of Lucas Moura, Erik Lamela and Son Heung-min, not to mention having an unhappy star man on the bench.
It’s time that the former Manchester City boss admits he got it wrong in picking Masuaku over Cresswell, and reverses his decision before it’s too late.
