The Paraguayan international never settled into a consistent rhythm during his 2019-20 season for West Ham.
Hopes were high for Fabian Balbuena heading into his sophomore campaign. He had developed a solid partnership with fellow new boy Issa Diop in their first season together and for a £4 million fee in the summer of 2018, many believed Balbuena was an absolute steal for West Ham.
High expectations were placed upon “The General” after posting above-average stats of 1.7 tackles and 2.3 interceptions per ninety minutes in his first season at the club. A nearly 80% passing percentage and 7.5 clearances per ninety minutes also showed Balbuena’s calm and poise at the back.
But similar to Balbuena’s French partner, he did not meet those aforementioned expectations this season and lost his starting spot multiple times to both Diop and Angelo Ogbonna.
Regression was seen in all of those key statistical categories as the centre back completed just 1 tackle and 1.5 interceptions per ninety minutes while also only achieving a 71.6% passing percentage and 4.52 clearances per ninety minutes.
Rough Start to the Season
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Balbuena and Diop paired up at the back for the opening match of the season at home against Manchester City. The centre back pairing had a rough go of it, giving up five goals to the champions, with Balbuena significantly outclassed. Right away, Balbuena lost his starting spot to Ogbonna.
Balbuena did not appear in a Premier League match for over two months, as a few poor results motivated Pellegrini to give his fellow South American another chance. And while Balbuena did hold down a starting spot for a few more matches, a dismal performance at Turf Moor opened the door for Ogbonna to once again take the starting spot, a position he did not relinquish.
The Paraguayan did, however, show the talent that shined through during his first West Ham campaign. After getting another chance to start, impeccable performances against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge and Southampton at St. Mary’s helped the club pick up vital points in the relegation battle they quickly found themselves in.
More solid performances against Leicester City and Bournemouth gave Balbuena a decent run-in with the team, but a lack of consistency was to be the story for the rest of the season.
Inconsistency the Name of the Game
While he did not make many vital errors, a poorly held ball against Sheffield United allowed the Blades to score the only goal of the match which firmly placed West Ham in a relegation scrap. David Moyes must have seen enough as he replaced Balbuena with Diop, who also did not relinquish that starting position.
Balbuena started only one more match for West Ham the rest of the season, a 2-0 loss to Spurs after the restart, as Ogbonna was not matched fit. He played sparingly off the bench in three more matches but did not contribute anything of note.
Final Grade: C+
While Balbuena wasn’t awful at the back and was let down by some poor goalkeeping at times, he did not show the same confidence on the ball and poise at the back we saw from him the prior season.
He had multiple chances to hold down a starting spot but inconsistent play prevented him from doing so and allowed Diop and Ogbonna to establish themselves at the centre of Moyes’ defence.
Balbuena did not meet the high expectations set upon him and now sees himself a squad player with Moyes looking to sign another centre back. This may be the last season Balbuena remains in East London as the enters the final year of his three-year deal.