Sam Inkersole has claimed that West Ham United midfielder Mark Noble remains imperative to Manuel Pellegrini’s squad despite being off the boil recently.
The Football.London journalist admitted that the Hammers are must worst without their captain in the heart of midfield alongside Declan Rice, and there is no doubting that he should start each game.
“Who has been a bit off the boil over the past three games but it is still, without even a shred of debate, imperative he plays,” he wrote in his weekly power rankings on Monday afternoon.
“West Ham are worse without him in the starting line up.”
Noble missed the beginning of the season in the Premier League, but returned after the games against both Manchester City and Brighton, starting every single game since under Pellegrini.
OPINION
There is no doubting that West Ham are a shadow of their usual selves when Noble is not on the field. The Hammers’ captain has a huge impact on his teammates and is influential in their success in the Premier League. That was certainly highlighted when he missed the first two days of the season. Many teams have been dismantled by Manchester City on their day, but the Hammers had zero answers in their 5-0 defeat, something which didn’t get much better despite picking up a point against Brighton. West Ham were battered on the South Coast but came away with a point when stealing an equaliser. Noble came back from injury and West Ham immediately bounced back with wins against Watford, Norwich, and Manchester United – coincidence? Definitely not. Inkersole is right to single out Noble in this West Ham squad, and Pellegrini will know more than anyone how integral he is to his squad moving forward.