Although Sébastien Haller has had a great start to life in the Premier League with West Ham, the squad could be doing more to ensure the Frenchman dominates the league for years to come.
By no means has Sébastien Haller struggled out of the gate in the Premier League, as West Ham United’s massive French Striker has scored 4 goals and tallied on an assist in 7 Premier League matches so far. Although Haller has had success so far, Manuel Pellegrini’s squad could do a better job of playing to Seb’s strengths as a Striker.
Most people would agree that Haller is so much more than just a target-man for the Irons who holds up play. Haller is an incredibly skilled passer of the ball, and this trait shows this week in and out, as he constantly plays Anderson and Yarmolenko in on attacks. However, Haller does thrive in the air and could receive some more crosses into the box for him to try to convert.
Ever since Manuel Pellegrini decided to go with Aaron Cresswell and Ryan Fredericks as his two wing-backs, the Hammers have been a lot more solid at the back, but the final delivery into the box going forward has not been great.
Haller scored against Crystal Palace from a Fredericks pass into the box, and I think Haller needs to be made more of a point of emphasis in the attack. He is so clinical in front of goal but has simply lacked service at times this season from the wide players.
Felipe Anderson and Yarmolenko must be held accountable for this as well. Too many times, the Hammers will have great build-up play, get the ball into the wide areas, only to have a cross go astray, or a bad decision and a giveaway.
The first would be to insert Arthur Masuaku back into the XI. Yes, the Irons would most likely suffer defensively from this, but the hope would be that King Arthur would be able to deliver a better ball than Cresswell on the wing. The second change would be to bring back Robert Snodgrass into the team
The Scotsman does lack pace and power, however, he can deliver an accurate ball and could help give Haller the service he needs to dominate opposing back-lines. Both are solid bench options that Pellegrini has at his disposal.
Once again, nothing is wrong with Haller’s start to the season. He has been involved in the play, scored some great goals, and has overall been a focal point of the attack this season. I just believe that if there was a focus to make sure he gets good service in the box, we could see a good player turn into a great player very quickly.