West Ham United: The obscure case of Sebastien Haller
The last thing that anyone surrounding West Ham wanted was for Haller to not succeed. Currently, he’s not, but it the reason why not is more obscure than what has been revealed.
Everyone knows the definition of insanity, so when Manuel Pellegrini sat Sebastien Haller for the first time all season against Chelsea, it meant that at least the Gaffer was trying something new with a hope that when Haller came back to the starting XI he would be renewed for West Ham.
However, after Wednesday night against Wolves, you can chalk that tweak in the starting XI up for another loss. If there was an award for the worst player in the match, Seb might’ve won it as he is continuing to not do himself any favors.
In the match, he had 0 attempts on net, only completed 56% of his passes, and only successfully dribbled 3 times. In a match where you are trying to win your job back, those numbers won’t cut it and as many of the West Ham faithful begin to write off the record signing, there might be more than what meets the eye.
The first issue with Haller is right in the definition of obscurity, West Ham doesn’t really know him. He started out the season on a banger scoring 3 times in August but those goals came against 2 sides battling in the relegation zone and other than that, he has been really quiet towards the net.
Being that it’s now December you can understand his frustrations but what is hard to understand is his lack of commitment when it comes to finishing the play or trying to get his head on the ball. In an attempt to get the ball more, he has continually moved further back the pitch which moves him further away from opportunities.
Pellegrini: "I think it is more important to win our home games." That's....interesting. https://t.co/h0UdmRZzWu
— Sam Inkersole (@Sam_InkersoleTM) December 4, 2019
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About the only thing that has been revealed about Haller is his hold up play but let’s be honest, he can hold it up all day but it does no good when nobody is there to help him. Pellegrini had a chance against Wolves to give him help and yet he decided to bring him off for Albian Ajeti in the second half.
It seems that West Ham doesn’t know Haller because he hasn’t been given the right opportunity. The flack that he has been getting is understandable, but you can’t just throw the ball at someone and make it work. He needs to be given a chance, but the right chance because a £45m investment should mean you work to get him the chance.
West Ham has a small sample size of tools at their disposal to help Haller get to his best and allow the club, its fans, and staff to get to know him. The before mentioned Ajeti and Michail Antonio should be starting next to Haller, not replacing or starting in front of him.
Snodgrass shows leadership in West Ham defeat. dark. Next
Until this happens, the entire Hammers community will go on with an obscure thought about Sebastien Haller and who he really is. Hopefully, it will happen sooner than later before his frustrations boil over and you lose a potential world-beater.