In terms of footballing technique, Lucas Paquetá and new West Ham striker Pablo sit at opposite ends of the skill spectrum. That said, when it comes to work rate and attitude, there is an equally stark contrast between the two.
What we learned from the Hammers’ victory over Tottenham Hotspur last week was that every single player selected by Nuno Espírito Santo was fully committed to the cause. Pablo was deployed in an unusual, almost reverse front two alongside fellow new signing Taty Castellanos, and the pair formed an effective partnership.
Neither found the net, of course, but in terms of effort and application, they offered far more than Paquetá has managed to provide in recent weeks.
Nuno Espirito Santo poses with Taty Castellanos and Pablo Felipe. The West Ham manager looks likely to continue with his duo at the expense of wantaway Paqueta
Effort Has to Be Rewarded
While Paquetá continues to agitate for a move back to his native Brazil, West Ham have seen precious little benefit from his undoubted talent since he was acquitted of his FA charges. Nuno may be keen to keep his star Brazilian at the club, but at what cost?
As West Ham approach yet another must-win fixture against Sunderland, the reality is that Paquetá simply does not deserve to start. Neither his attitude nor his recent performances justify a place in the starting line-up. Therefore, it was heartening to hear Nuno say that the Brazilian will not be involved this weekend although the injury excuse is still being wheeled out.
If a decision has to be made, then it should be a simple one. Taty should once again be paired with his new partner Pablo, who ran himself into the ground in North London last weekend.
That level of work rate, commitment and tenacity must be rewarded. It is exactly what West Ham will desperately need if they are to survive the relegation fight in the second half of the season.
The biggest problem is Pablo is not very good, and the huge cost of the transfer compared to his abilities shows just how bad our recruitment is. Yes he works hard but that’s not enough we needed to bring in someone with much more to offer than he does, yet here we are yet again having spent way to much for a bang average (at best) player.
Paqueta also keeps stopping the flow of the game holding onto the ball for too long. Pablo & Castellanos keep the ball moving all the time, as do academy players as well. It’s a good fit, while Paqueta can beat 2/3 players from a standing start which is brilliant, but he does this in the midfield area to little real effect and in the meantime defenders get into position and the game is no longer flowing forward for WHU.
Anyhow, been a long time since we saw P. playing anywhere near his best and acting like a team player the way he can.
100% we need workers not shirkers, yeah the dancing looks good but we need players to give it their all. Agree that when Pablo or Tatty get tired, bring on our new super sub Wilson. Hopefully Sunderland won’t be as hard as when we played them last time and they’d just come up with something to prove. We have to win, it’s as simple as that? Hopefully swap Igor (and Kilman) for someone a bit better in defence! COYI⚒️⚒️⚒️⚒️
I far prefer Pablo in the 10 role than Paqueta. I’ll take work rate over rare flair any day of the week.
Fully agree, Paqueta is a luxury player and it works well if surrounded by top level support. We do not have that luxury so its hard graft and do or die approach which will stand us a chance of getting out the mire!
So true on so many levels. His technical ability, and output has been poor to say the least. If he worked as hard as Pablo, he’d be world class, but he doesn’t. To be frank we actually look better without him. I get he can change a game in an instant, but when and how often did he actually do this in claret and blue??
Spot on
Quite right Gonzo with the proviso that when Pablo is knackered Wilson comes on in his place to exploit a tired opposition defense .