Ryan Fredericks: West Ham’s elite fullback

Ryan Fredericks put forward a dominant and near, if not, perfect performance against the Saints of Southampton. The English fullback has all the skills to be an absolute baller and give West Ham an elite answer at right-back.

Too much, too young, too fast – Jet had written the perfect description for Ryan Fredericks and his first Premier League start against Liverpool. The Reds were too talented, he was too young (Premier League debut), and both he and his opposition were just too fast to control.

Fast forward to now, and Ryan Fredericks is a no-brainer to start for West Ham after his recent performances. The 26-year-old defender was dropped after his awful start at Anfield, but he took the time off to refocus and learn under manager Manuel Pellegrini and right-back legend, Pablo Zabaleta.

Zabaleta’s experience and defense-first mentality allowed the Hammers to ride out a rocky August and settle down in September and beyond. Just when the team stabilized their play, Fredericks was reintroduced as a sub against Huddersfield Town. The game would end a draw, but Fredericks would pick up an ankle injury sidelining him for 11 matches.

His next match would be against the then league leaders, Liverpool, where he put in a really solid performance. He looked to have turned a page at that point and went on to prove it over the next few matches. After some more teeter-tottering performances, Fredericks has been on fire in his last two matches.

The sample size is small, but he’s contributed to back-to-back clean sheets against Spurs and Southampton. His Saint’s match stats aren’t anything to mess with either:

The biggest knock against Fredericks was his play on the defensive side of the ball. His comfort zone is rushing up the wing, overlapping with his forward or midfielder, and heading towards goal. That being said, Fredericks has been a revelation with the high-line in the last two matches, putting in goal-saving blocks in each match.

As much as his speed allows him to get forward, it also allows him to regain position defensively. The one-year extension of Pablo Zabaleta is the absolute best news for Fredericks as well. Not only will he get to learn from one of the best to ever play the position, but Fredericks will also not have to worry about a new signing chasing his position.

As said, it is a small sample size. I really do believe, though, that the investment made in Fredericks last summer and the incubation he’s gone through this season will factor into his rise to elite status. He played elite against Saints and Spurs and will get a chance to make it three elite performances on the bounce in the season finale.