By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)
West Ham’s pursuit of Manor Solomon makes increasingly more sense the closer you look at how Nuno Espírito Santo is trying to build his team.
Yesterday’s 3-1 Carabao Cup victory over Portsmouth at the London Stadium provided another example. The Hammers looked at their most dangerous when attacking quickly, but there remains one glaring problem.
This team simply doesn’t have enough pace.
Exactly what Nuno is missing
That’s where Solomon could make a significant difference.
The 27-year-old is predominantly a ball-carrying winger who is comfortable receiving possession and driving directly at defenders.
He averages 4.9 dribbles per 90 minutes with an impressive 64% success rate while also producing almost three progressive runs per game.
Those numbers look tailor-made for a Nuno counter-attacking team.
They could become even more important given the changing role of Jarrod Bowen. The West Ham captain still starts from the right but increasingly drifts into central areas and takes on greater creative responsibility.
Having Solomon providing genuine pace from the opposite flank would give West Ham some much-needed balance.
| Manor Solomon | Key Stat |
|---|---|
| Dribbles per 90 | 4.90 |
| Dribble success | 64.15% |
| Progressive runs per 90 | 2.96 |
| Shot assists per 90 | 1.85 |
| Pass accuracy | 85.97% |
Very little adaptation required
There is also considerably less guesswork involved than with many potential Championship signings.
Solomon has already played 39 league games at this level for Leeds United, clocking up 2,777 minutes during their 2024/25 campaign.
He’s experienced English football with Leeds, Fulham and Tottenham, while more recent spells with Villarreal and Fiorentina mean he has continued to test himself at a high level.
As I wrote when looking at Troy Parrott, West Ham don’t need to abandon Nuno’s system—we need players who improve it.
West Ham were always going to struggle to replace Crysencio Summerville with somebody of identical quality, but they desperately need someone with similar attributes.
The current alternatives simply aren’t good enough, and Nuno didn’t even have a recognised left winger available against Portsmouth.
Solomon wouldn’t solve every problem in this West Ham squad.
But he’d solve a pretty important one.
Pace.