West Ham United: Frank McAvennie fumes at Konstantinos Mavropanos after what happened v Burnley
Frank McAvennie has slammed Konstantinos Mavropanos after the defender scored an own-goal in the 2-2 draw with Burnley at the London Stadium.
The former West Ham man insisted that, with Mavropanos and Kurt Zouma in defence, he is never confident of keeping a clean sheet.
He went on to insist that you have to ensure your defence is solid with players like Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus in attack as they need to be given the freedom to lose the ball without worrying.
McAvennie – speaking exclusively to West Ham Zone – reiterated his view that a solid back four is key to letting the attacking players thrive at the London Stadium.
“That big guy gives gifts away every week, doesn’t he? Him and Zouma, those two at the back… There’s always going to be goals when they play. I’m not confident of a clean sheet,” McAvennie fumed.
“When you’ve got the middle four and front two, whatever system you play, when you’ve got players like that, I’d make sure I’ve got good defenders. These boys are going to do their bit and they’re going to lose it. You can’t tell them not to lose it, but you’ve got to have a solid back four.“
Konstantinos Mavropanos makes another mistake for West Ham
Improvements are needed in defence if the Hammers want to make progress both in the Premier League and in Europe, with the constant mistakes and lack of confidence in the back line never making their games feel comfortable.
This is also not the first time McAvennie has pointed to Zouma as a potential reason for the Hammers’ struggles at the back, with his overall assessment that he is never confident of a clean sheet as the biggest issue with them in the side.
Darren Bent was also critical of Mavropanos’ display live on talkSPORT as he hit out at the defender, with questions now being asked of the overall quality of the Hammers’ back line.
Given the usual style of play under David Moyes at the London Stadium, defensive stability is a crucial part of allowing the team to be successful, so silly mistakes like the ones Mavropanos and Zouma have made are often damaging.
In other West Ham news, Garth Crooks gushed over a star player after what he saw.
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