By top blogger Allen Cummings
We can be an unforgiving lot sometimes. Last season’s hero Felipe Anderson has come in for a degree of criticism for his performance in Monday night’s tough encounter at Aston Villa, the main accusation being that he was often too easily out muscled by the robust Villa defence, and in particular by their no-nonsense right back Frederic Guilbert.
Our 5ft 9in Brazilian is not the biggest or strongest of footballers, and being bullied out of a game is a charge that’s been levelled at him before. Putting more emphasis on self-preservation than some would like.
But is that a charge that’s rather harsh and unfair? Were we as critical of former hero Paolo Di Canio, who regularly adopted a similar self-preservation stance?
Anderson is no coward. Let’s establish that. Can he be blamed for looking after his own well being? Getting involved in a battle that he’s not equipped to win is madness. Risking injury unnecessarily serves no purpose for him personally – or for the West Ham cause.
This club more than most has suffered because of injury to key players at vital times. I for one want to see Felipe Anderson on the team sheet – not on the injury list. Paolo Di Canio was and will always be a Hammers’ hero. but he wasn’t a football ‘hardman’ either.
There were plenty of games where he went missing – particularly venues north of Watford. But we forgave him that because when he was on his game and in the mood he was magic. Is Anderson any different?
No-one can deny Felipe’s readiness to accept the ball – his ability to create chances for others – or take them himself – has been instrumental in making him a firm favourite with many West Ham fans.
His work-rate for the team has improved immeasurably since his arrival last season as our ‘then’ record buy at £36m from Lazio. But it’s his perceived ‘bravery’ that attracts criticism from some quarters.
On Sunday he’ll face another stiff test of his character when coming up against Manchester United’s impressive young right back Aaron Wan Bissaka, the Reds £50m plus summer signing from Crystal Palace, a contest I believe Anderson will thrive on.
Wan Bissaka isn’t the traditional tough tackling full-back Anderson appears to struggle against. He’s more of a ball player who likes to get forward himself – the kind of opponent Felipe appears to prefer facing.
Big games call for big players – and Anderson is every bit a quality act! In the corresponding fixture last season hescored his first West Ham goal after just five minutes to set us on the road to an exhilarating 3-1 victory, our first of the season at the London Stadium.
Our little Brazilian is an exciting player – he makes things happen and gets supporters on the edge of their seats. We loved him for doing just that last season. I’ve seen nothing this season for us to stop loving him. Sunday will be a test not only of his ability but also his character. I’m convinced he will rise to the challenge!
Anderson didn’t have his best game but was always willing and put in a shift, even though he didn’t have lots of success. He is going to be identified more as a threat after his first season and teams will have tactics to prevent him, am sure Villa had a plan for him.
What was a little disappointing was the decision to keep attacking down the left flank. We barely did anything down the right and perhaps that’s due to more confidence in Anderson than Yarmolenko. In fairness the latter didn’t see much of the ball, which was the same for Fredericks, who looked pretty capable on the odd occasion he did.
By being so one side we make it easier for teams to counter and shift across that way, so we need to work on that, even if it’s just to be less predictable and therefore open up more space for Anderson.
well put allen His best work for west ham will be done with the ball at his feet haveing said that he also gets in more blocks and steals than you think
I agree Matty. He does his fair share of defensive duties – but it’s his offensive work that’s the mainstay of his play – as it should be.
A joy to watch on his day
A very frustrating player at times. One week he’s unplayable, the next 2 games he doesn’t want to take a man on. There’s definitely some kind of confidence issue with him and does tend to withdraw within himself after a couple of hard challenges/bit of pressure from crowd. He wouldn’t be playing for us if he could find consistency but he definitely has the ability to be a big player for us this season.