One aspect that might have gone unnoticed in The Hammers loss to Aston Villa was Kurt Zouma’s limited mobility. Unai Emery’s Midlander’s very quickly saw a West Ham weakness in central defence and went about exploiting it.
It shouldn’t have surprised me too much, given that I’ve occasionally described the central defender as ‘broken’. I don’t intend this description to be derogatory, but it’s evident that Zouma’s body is struggling to cope with the demands of Premier League football. It seems that a series of injuries have finally caught up with him, and his lack of agility was exposed by Ollie Watkins at Villa Park.
These signs have been apparent for some time. I first noticed Zouma running with a limp two seasons ago, and it has definitely worsened since then. Initially, it seemed like he was just slower, but now he’s having difficulty making quick turns as well. The defender has gone from looking slow to the proverbial player running in treacle.
Kurt Zouma’s lack of mobility is now an area of weakness for West Ham
West Ham confirmed his injury when questioned by Claret and Hugh earlier this month. According to a high-ranking source at the club, Zouma won’t be offered a new contract anytime soon due to his injury. Claret and Hugh were also informed that Zouma couldn’t play twice a week due to his knee problems.
I’ve always sensed that Zouma was managing some discomfort, but it never seemed to affect his performance. Unfortunately, against Villa, his struggles were apparent and proved costly for West Ham. In many ways, Unai Emery’s Villa team might have shown a strategy for attacking West Ham to anyone with a nimble striker.
Zouma remains a fine defender, but Moyes have to pick and choose his games carefully.
Absolutely agree Hughie I too have noticed Kurt’s mobility issues, he looks really troubled on the turn and has no pace. As I posted previously I think this may be contributing to errors by Aguerd and Alvarez in trying to cover, especially against a quick break. Ideal time for Mavro and also Kehrer to come in, Moyes really does need to use his squad now, including Mubama up top.
Zouma has never been tight enough to a forward when a ball is played into the channel, he always allows that vital second too much enabling the forward to shoot or cross. Whether it’s his fitness or lack of ability to read the game, this weakness has been evident since he joined us. It may seem harsh but I think Zouma and Aguerd have too many weaknesses between them to continue as first choices for the rest of the season.
Hugh!! 🤫 shhhhhh! Saudi clubs want him 😉