Credit: Imago

Scott Mason

Fri 20 March 2026 11:40, UK

West Ham United boss Nuno Espirito Santo used Pablo as a left-winger last time out, with it safe to say the decision failed to pay off.

The Hammers’ centre-forward woes have been well documented over the years, and the winter arrival of the Brazilian had hoped to put those concerns to a close.

Life at London Stadium has started tough for the striker, who picked up an injury early into his spell in England.

However, after returning, Nuno Espirito Santo had opted to use him out wide against Manchester City.

Now, with West Ham travelling to face Aston Villa, the Portuguese manager must resist any temptation to continue playing Pablo out of position.

Pablo was isolated against Man City at left-wing

Although Pablo had been used out wide before joining West Ham, the role was one that he had never truly excelled in throughout his career.

The Brazilian has scored just one goal when deployed on the wing, and Nuno hoping that changes for the Irons is nothing more than wishful thinking.

If the Irons manager wants to get the best out of Pablo, he must be deployed in a central position. Keeping him out wide could hurt his confidence and falter any hopes he can solve the Hammers’ striker problems.

When he faced Manchester City, the Brazilian striker was completely out of the game. In 64 minutes, he had just 23 touches and failed to register a single shot.

Although it may not have exactly been his fault, with the Irons only registering one shot themselves, history shows that the 22-year-old fails to impress out wide.

Now, with Aston Villa on the horizon, the West Ham manager could be tempted to stick with his guns after a strong point against City.

How Pablo could score first West Ham goal against Aston Villa

Out of all of Aston Villa’s goals conceded this season, 30 per cent of them have come against opposition strikers.

Additionally, in the reverse fixture, West Ham used a two-striker formation which saw them score twice against the Villans.

One of those goals came from Jarrod Bowen operating as a number nine.

Although they ultimately lost 3-2, that game did show that the Irons could cause problems using their centre-forward.

If Nuno opts to go with a similar setup with Pablo as one of the two strikers, he could have a high chance of adding a first goal to his West Ham account.