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West Ham Pulse: The race for West Ham’s third choice center-back

By Adam Smith

SHANGHAI, CHINA - JULY 20: Elias Sorensen of Newcastle United competes the ball with Winston Reid during the Premier League Asia Trophy 2019 match between West Ham United and Newcastle United at Shanghai Hongkou Stadium on July 20, 2019 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images for Premier League)
SHANGHAI, CHINA - JULY 20: Elias Sorensen of Newcastle United competes the ball with Winston Reid during the Premier League Asia Trophy 2019 match between West Ham United and Newcastle United at Shanghai Hongkou Stadium on July 20, 2019 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images for Premier League) /
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West Ham’s first-team selections for center-back pick themselves with Issa Diop and Fabian Balbuena taking the starting roles. That being said, who should win the right to third choice center-back out of Winston Reid and Angelo Ogbonna?

The right to third choice striker sounds like a patronizing statement, but for Manuel Pellegrini’s motivated team both third and fourth choice will be called upon often. Yes, this team looks better (despite depth) across the board with new attacking options coming in, but the addition of Winston Reid to challenge and play with Angelo Ogbonna is massive, too.

Between these two, the race is on for first choice injury promotion center-back. As it stands, it may be Angelo Ogbonna’s position to lose but the Hammers fans on HammersPolls Twitter suggest otherwise.

A clean 75% for Reid over Ogbonna shows that the West Ham supporters don’t forget or abandon their team’s vice-captains from seasons prior. Reid was noticeably absent from Pellegrini’s first year at the helm for West Ham last season after a preseason knee injury kept him out for the entire season. With his rehabbing done and preseason well underway it’s great to see Reid back in the Claret and Blue.

Fan votes aside, should this position be Ogbonna’s to lose? The Italian center-back was called upon for 24 Premier League matches last season, following Balbuena’s injury and Diop’s need for rest. He got off to a sloppy start, but Ogbonna gelled really well and impressed down the line.

He even chipped in on the scoresheet, too! In those 24 league games, Ogbonna scored against Huddersfield Town in a thrilling comeback win and added an assist against Fulham. He also chipped in two goals in three FA Cup matches as well.

Reid and Ogbonna are both 31-years-old and both register at 6’3″ so there is no age or reach advantage between them. What this decision comes down to is the need for leadership and grit that Reid brings or the risktaking flair that Ogbonna brings.

Should all go according to plan Balbuena and Diop will be the first choice center-backs and Ogbonna and Reid will come together to be the Irons’ FA Cup and League Cup defender partnership. Having the option to rest the starters in Cup games will be huge for Pellegrini and the veteran presence against lower league teams will also be a positive for the squad.

Next. Who is the next man up for West Ham with Pedro Obiang departing East London?. dark

The gap between 2nd and 3rd choice is, realistically, a lot farther than the gap spacing 3rd and 4th choice. Regardless of who jumps up in the depth chart, both players will be integral in the Cup runs and squad depth Manuel Pellegrini needs this season.