Julen Lopetegui has to drag off Konstantinos Mavropanos at half-time v Chelsea amid horror show
Julen Lopetegui must replace Konstantinos Mavropanos at half-time with West Ham already 2-0 down against Chelsea on Saturday 21 September.
The Hammers were 1-0 down inside just four minutes as Chelsea opened up their defence all too easily, Nicolas Jackson beating both Edson Alvarez and Mavropanos before slotting past Alphonse Areola.
Mavropanos was again beaten with ease for pace by Jackson as Chelsea doubled their lead, the striker running in behind from deep to score after Alvarez and Lucas Paqueta switched off in midfield.
Mohammed Kudus thought he’d halved the deficit, only to be denied by the offside flag, and while the Irons still have plenty going forward, it’s in defence where Lopetegui urgently needs to make changes.
Lopetegui has already made one alteration in defensive midfield, taking off Guido Rodriguez for Tomas Soucek, but there are issues to address in central defence with Jean-Clair Todibo the obvious option.
Julen Lopetegui must rectify first-half error in West Ham v Chelsea
Ahead of kick-off in this London derby, Lopetegui did make two needed changes with Paqueta and Crysencio Summerville brought into the starting XI to make up half of an exciting front four.
However, the most glaring omission was that of Todibo – who is yet to start a match in the Premier League – with Mavropanos preferred to the Irons’ new loan signing once yet again by the Spaniard.
Mavropanos was also at fault for Fulham’s opening goal against the Hammers last weekend, and bringing him out of the firing line was by far the most sensible of changes Lopetegui could have made.
Todibo’s arrival on loan from OGC Nice came amid much fanfare and interest from top sides across Europe, making Lopetegui’s continued restraint from using him all the more baffling.
Despite Alvarez routinely dropping into the backline to form a five-man defence, Mavropanos remained all at sea in the first half, slow on the turn and targeted by Chelsea as they hit long passes over the top.
It’s become quite clear that Mavropanos can’t be trusted to hold the Irons’ high line for a minute longer than necessary, and Todibo must be brought off the bench if West Ham are to rescue this game.
In other West Ham news, Nayef Aguerd has made a new London Stadium exit admission after his deadline-day transfer
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