David Moyes must be brave and hand Konstantinos Mavropanos first West Ham United start v Aston Villa after what he did for Greece
West Ham United defender Konstantinos Mavropanos played the full 90 minutes for Greece in their 1-0 defeat against Holland on Tuesday and could force David Moyes into a brave decision v Aston Villa.
The Greek defender joined the Hammers for an initial £17 million with a further £2 million expected to be paid in add-ons [Sky Sports, 23 August] and so far he has been limited to start in the Carabao Cup and Europa League as Kurt Zouma and Nayef Aguerd are preferred in the Premier League.
Across his two Europa League stars this year, the 25-year-old has been excellent both in defence and on the ball as the Hammers have maintained their unbeaten start to the European campaign. Mavropanos is yet to be dribbled past and has averaged more than four ball recoveries a match [Sofascore].
On the ball, he has completed an outstanding 90 per cent of his attempted passes, with the Greek international only misplacing five per cent of his efforts inside his own half.
The Greek international has been well worth his weight in gold so far since his move, despite just two starts but with reports emerging on Thursday [90Min, 12 October] that Zouma is being targeted by clubs in the Saudi Pro League for a potential transfer, and Nayef Aguerd struggling for form right now, Moyes may well be inclined to shake things up in defence ahead of Sunday’s crucial Premier League clash against Aston Villa (22 October).
There will be a reluctance to lose Zouma to the riches of the Saudi Pro League and in an ideal world Moyes would rotate the three of Mavropanos, Zouma and Aguerd regularly.
But, the Greek international has used the international break to prove to Moyes why he deserves to usurp and unsettle his tried and trusted defensive partnership.
Against Ireland on Friday (13 October), Mavropanos was again at his colossal best, winning 75% of his ground duels, 66% of his aerial duels, winning five of his total duels, whilst successfully completing seven of his long balls, registering six clearances and dribbled past not once all game [SofaScore] contributing heavily to a comfortable 2-0 win.
However, it was his performance against European giants Netherlands that will have certainly caught Moyes’ eye and also forced him into a critical decision for Sunday.
Despite the 1-0 defeat, the former Stuttgart man showed his colossal class, completing 85% of his passes, nine of his long passes, 100% of his dribbles, two of his three ground duels, 50% of his aerial duels and a whopping seven clearances [SofaScore] in a dominant defensive display.
The defeat may have hurt his nation’s chances of Euro 2024 qualification in the long-term but in the short term, his performance has done his West Ham United starting opportunities the world of good.
Moyes must be brave to start him against Villa on Sunday.
In other West Ham news, the Hammers have sent out a strong message to the rest of the Premier League after one exciting London Stadium announcement recently.