West Ham Must Give Golambeckis His Chance if Mavropanos Is Ruled Out

West Ham have been dealt a potentially significant injury blow, with Konstantinos Mavropanos reportedly requiring a scan on a knee injury which could rule him out of the weekend’s Championship clash against West Bromwich Albion.

The news comes courtesy of ExWHUEmployee, and it’s certainly not what Nuno Espírito Santo needed following the defeat against Southampton.

I actually think Mavropanos has been one of our most effective players this season, particularly with his goalscoring contribution. Losing him would be a blow, but there is another side to this.

Could This Be Golambeckis’ Opportunity?

In my latest video, I discuss why West Ham’s defensive problems haven’t suddenly disappeared just because we’ve managed two consecutive clean sheets.

I’ve been particularly concerned by our right-hand side, where Kyle Walker-Peters has too often left Mavropanos trying to cover two positions at once.

But if Dinos is unavailable, I’d love to see Airidas Golambeckis given another opportunity.

I thought the youngster was absolutely outstanding in his previous two appearances and extremely unlucky to lose his place. He deserves another chance on merit, not simply because somebody else might be injured.

I also discuss why Max Kilman has arguably been our most reliable defender, the problems with using Morato at left-back and why Nuno has some important decisions to make before West Brom.

Losing Mavropanos isn’t good news. But it might just force Nuno to address a defensive problem that’s been staring us in the face for weeks.