Julen Lopetegui needs to play regular starter in his preferred position

Since joining West Ham in a £15 million transfer move from Manchester United, 26-year-old right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been one of the best players for the Hammers. Wan-Bissaka has established himself as an integral part of the defence under manager Julen Lopetegui and has started all league matches for West Ham since making his first appearance for the Hammers as a second half substitute in a 2-0 win against Crystal Palace.

However, the versatile fullback has often been played in a more advanced right midfielder role rather than as a right-back. Wan-Bissaka is one of the best defensive fullbacks in the English top flight and can play as a centre-back as well, but going forward to create some goalscoring chances isn't one of his biggest strengths.

Julen Lopetegui needs to play regular starter in his preferred position

In the recent 2-1 win over Manchester United, Lopetegui played Wan-Bissaka as a right sided playmaker against his former side. Although Wan-Bissaka won the ball-possession quickly and often gave some key passes to captain Jarrod Bowen, the 26-year-old's absence in the defence created a lot of space for Manchester United to advance inside the final third.

Alejandro Garnacho came very close to scoring in the first half, but his attempt was deflected by the goal-post. A few minutes later, the Argentina international gave a brilliant pass towards Rasmus Hojlund inside the box but Fabianski managed to keep Manchester United from taking the 1-0 lead.

Similarly, Lopetegui played Wan-Bissaka as a right midfielder against Chelsea last month, however, the difference in the results of these two matches was that Chelsea were brilliant with their finishing inside the box. On the other hand, Manchester United were struggling to score more league goals in their previous matches, otherwise West Ham could have to score multiple goals to make a comeback in the second half.

The Hammers signed Wan-Bissaka to bolster their defence in the ongoing Premier League campaign, and therefore, Lopetegui needs to start Wan-Bissaka at the right-back position itself to form a rock-solid defence alongside the centre-back partnership of Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo. The next match is an away fixture against high-flying Nottingham Forest and Wan-Bissaka should be played in a defensive role in order to take a win against the in-form home side.