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Yarmolenko deserves more time

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Image for Yarmolenko deserves more time

OPINION

Football is a fickle game. 

One minute you can be flavour of the month, the next you could be public enemy number one.

And that kind of cutthroat mentality can often stem from us, the fans.

After all, we demand results, and usually with little in the way of patience.

But sometimes that isn’t the way to go about things.

Take for instance, Andriy Yarmolenko.

The Ukrainian endured a torrid spell on the sidelines last season as a consequence of injury, but this year he looks to have returned to action at a decent pace.

Three goals and one assist already this season have marked him out as one of the Hammers’ more consistent performers, and his all round play has been good.

With an average Whoscored rating of 6.85, he has been impressive for the most part.

Which is why it’s so frustrating to read the latest report from Claret & Hugh suggesting that he could be a “victim” of Michail Antonio’s return from injury in the coming weeks.

According to the piece, Yarmolenko’s performance against Newcastle United on Saturday could be enough to see him ousted from the starting XI.

If that is true then it seems harsh.

His match rating against the Magpies was a paltry 5.82, but just the week prior he put in a very decent 7.30.

As such, dropping the £115,000-a-week ace [Spotrac] for one poor game seems like a real overreaction, and one that the Hammers must resist.

Give him more time, let him play his way out of his funk, and leave him in the side.

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