Lopetegui needs to swallow his pride and make Alphonse Areola call at West Ham

West Ham United should consider bringing Alphonse Areola back into the fold but are unlikely to do so due to Julen Lopetegui's pride.

Lukasz Fabianski looked particularly shaky against his former club Arsenal on Saturday [30 November] and is likely to start against Leicester City on Tuesday night.

The 39-year-old has been entrusted with the number one jersey by Lopetegui after dropping Areola following the 4-1 defeat at Tottenham on 19 October.

Despite Fabianski having kept two clean sheets of late, his experience often does not reflect his displays on the pitch which can tend to border on unreliable.

Lopetegui very unlikely to bring Areola back at West Ham anytime soon

West Ham have made many footballing decisions this season, many of which have not yet come to fruition.

Fabianski has enjoyed a wonderful and long career and it is a testament to the former Poland international that he is currently a first-choice Premier League goalkeeper who turns 40 before the end of the campaign.

Areola, however, has the higher ceiling of the two and is more likely to be part of a revival of form in a Lopetegui team than Fabianski would be.

It also brings a prevalent involvement of the business side of team selection. The 31-year-old's sell-on value is still intact, but for how long - and at what cost will he continue to sit on the bench in favour of a player likely to retire within the next year?

The Frenchman remains under contract at the London Stadium until 2027 and simply has more reason to perform for the Hammers - not to mention the ability he has shown during his earlier career.

Lopetegui has made his call, and could undermine himself to go back on it fewer than two months after swapping his number one. But he should swallow his pride and make the obvious decision to bring Areola back into the fold.

In other West Ham news, the Irons are "desperate" to hold talks over a potential deal with Manchester City.

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