A working formula; Reviewing West Ham’s Midfield

A bad month followed by a good month suggests that something changed for West Ham. Look no further than the midfield for that change as Pellegrini has constructed a three-man unit that seems to be working. Here are West Ham’s midfield grades.

In our rating system, we will be giving marks out of 10, with 5/10 for playing as expected. Whilst some newspapers and the like seem to give 6 or 7 out of 10 for an average display and may make this seem harsh, we think this makes sense. It also easily allows us here to put the West Ham players in opposite categories, for example, a 9/10 is as good as a 1/10 is bad.

Mark Noble: 7/10

Previous: 3/10

What can you say about Mark Noble? When he puts his head down and motivates his team to play for the badge he is simply a can’t miss player. Unfortunately, in the early goings of the season, he was a little overwhelmed and ineffective. Noble’s play since September has been stellar. In a midfield trio, he doesn’t try to do too much and doesn’t overextend himself on the pitch which helps keep the team shape and solidify the midfield.

The biggest aspect of Noble’s game is his leadership. It’s no secret now that after the Wolves loss Noble tore into his team and individual players, demanding more from them on the pitch. He carries enough clout, having been with West Ham for years, to demand the respect of his players, which is a crucial and unmeasurable asset he has in his player profile.

It’s been a dramatic turn in Noble’s games this season but the massive grade bump is deserved.

Stats:

Games: 6
Goals: 0
Assists: 2
Passes: 329 (54.83 avg. per match)
Big chances created: 1
Through balls: 1
Accurate longballs: 26
Tackles: 13 (46% success)
Interceptions: 1
Clearances: 2
Recoveries: 41
Duels: 25-23

Declan Rice: 8/10

Previous: 4/10

The next in line to lead West Ham, Declan Rice has taken the chance Pellegrini gave him and ran with it. After begin dropped at halftime for a miserable performance at Liverpool, Rice has drawn back into West Ham’s team and has cemented himself in the starting XI. He has been extremely special to watch in his defensive midfield role; it seems like his transition from a centre-back to midfield provided him the experience to get to where he needs to be to impact the game and win the ball back, protecting the back line.

West Ham supporters were calling for Pellegrini to go spend big on a defensive midfielder, however, Rice has calmed these demands down. It was a very justified demand for the fans to be crying out for, but now that Rice has been reinjected into the team and thrived, the need has dissipated. A lot of what Rice does won’t show up on the boxscore but he has bosses every game he’s been in and has dictated a ot fo West Ham’s current success.

Rice can learn a lot from Noble, Wilshere, and Obiang on how to play the midfield and will likely continue to develop into an elite Premier League midfielder, now we just need to sign him up long term!

Stats:

Games: 5
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Passes: 211 (42.20 avg. per match)
Accurate long balls: 17
Clean sheets: 1
Tackles: 8 (88% success)
Interceptions: 8
Clearances: 12
Recoveries: 33
Duels: 18-16

Pedro Obiang: 5.5/10

Previous: 2/10

The one true benefactor of the Jack Wilshere injury, Pedro Obiang has looked great in West Ham’s improved play since coming into the starting XI to face Everton. In that match, he and Noble were the playing ahead of Rice and were able to get up into the attack quite often. Both Noble and Obiang added assists in that game, but Obiang’s passing was next-level good.

He had failed to make any positive impact in West Ham’s team in the first month of action. He had his opportunities but couldn’t even look quality against AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup. I’m unsure of what’s changed for Obiang but he looks to be more effective now. Obiang is at his best when you don’t hear his name a lot; he makes timely tackles, wins balls, and advances play, but stay away from the flashy stuff usually.

Because of Obiang’s quiet style of play, he’ll likely be the one sacrificed when Wilshere returns from injury soon. Regardless of this substitution, Obiang has helped in settling the midfield down and has earned that big bump in grading.

Stats:

Games: 5
Goals: 0
Assists: 1
Passes: 130 (26. avg per game)
Big chances created: 1
Through balls: 2
Accurate longballs: 9
Shots: 6
Tackles: 12 (67% success)
Interceptions: 1
Clearances: 5
Recoveries: 18
Duels: 16-20

The Remainders

• Carlos Sanchez suffered a knee injury against Macclesfield Town and is believed to be out for the remainder of the season.
• Jack Wilshere is to resume first team training after the international break following his minor ankle surgery.
• Joe Powell and Conor Coventry are both pushing for first team minutes after strong Carabao Cup performances and solid U23 action.