OPINION
For a man with as much experience as West Ham’s Pablo Zabaleta it should come as no surprise that he is one of the most consistent performers in east London this season.
He might not be the same explosive full back who helped Manchester City to two Premier League titles – playing at 34-years-of-age will do that to a footballer – but he is still a wily old head who has plenty to offer Manuel Pellegrini and his side.
A mainstay for the Chilean, with 22 Premier League appearances under his belt this season, it seems almost certain that he will be among the starting XI when Everton visit the London Stadium this weekend after the international break.
Who he was set to come up against on the right hand flank – or Everton’s left, depending which way you look at things – seemed to be in doubt though, with regular Toffees full back Lucas Digne missing both of France’s games over the two week gap from league action.
Quite frankly, the Argentine would have thought Digne’s absence a blessing, having struggled to combat pacey wingers and wing backs this season and after a shocker against Huddersfield last time out, he would love to get a confidence boosting game under his belt.
That does not look to be the case, with Everton boss Marco Silva, as quoted by journalist Paul Joyce, revealing that Digne is set to be fit and ready to go for their clash against the Irons.
Silva says Lucas Digne should be fit for West Ham game
— paul joyce (@_pauljoyce) March 28, 2019
If Zabaleta puts in as poor a performance as he did against the Terriers before the two week break then he is going to be embarrassed by the Frenchman – it is as simple as that.
Digne is everything that Zabaleta was as a full back – fast, quick, direct and with a dangerous cross – and that is why the West Ham man will be so worried about coming up against him.
He has got to raise his game against the Toffees now – or face the prospect of humiliation by his full back rival.
