Some would’ve never thought that West Ham United would ever miss the likes of Michail Antonio. Up until the end of last season and the beginning of this one, those words were not spoken around East London. However, these words are now true.
It literally felt that just as soon as West Ham United’s right midfielder/forward was getting hot this season, he went out in a Carabao Cup match against Newport County. All of a sudden the Hammers were left with only a few options at that spot. New boy Pablo Fornals or returning star Andriy Yarmolenko.
Pellegrini has decided that in the absence of Antonio the Hammers will run the same formation but with the Ukrainian international, Yarmolenko, down the right side. It’s not a bad choice and considering the Hammers have the depth for the first time in a while at midfield, it makes sense. But can there be room for improvement?
With Antonio missing, West Ham is missing his pace and athleticism to get up and down the pitch with ease. His ability to trouble both the keeper on one end and the attackers on the other has been a difference-maker this season and with no disrespect to Yarmo, he hasn’t lived up to the same hype.
What if the Hammers moved him up to play along side Haller and moved the formation from a 4-2-3-1 to a GSH favorite, 4-2-2-2? In short, the back line would look the same and the back 2 would be Rice and Noble. The other midfield 2 could be Anderson and Lanzini followed by Haller and Yarmolenko upfront.
The negative to this is that it would put a lot more pressure on the outside backs, Fredericks and Masuaku, who at times have either looked the part or looked underachieved. However, the positives outweigh the negatives in this scenario as both Haller and Yarmolenko have the ability to finish and control the ball closer to the net.
Yarmolenko still doesn’t look comfortable taking players on or fully tracking back to defend, and who can blame him after that type of injury, but being upfront with his abilities to pass and control the ball could work wonders for the Hammers. This is armchair managing 101, but it could be just what is needed to spark a change for the time being in East London.