Everybody associated with West Ham will be delighted to hear that Pablo Zabaleta has absolutely no intention of retiring just yet.
Despite previously dropping heavy hints that his Hammers days maybe coming to a conclusion at the end of the season he appears to have decided that he will be be going on for a bit yet.
And although he initially indicated that may be in the middle east, such is his tone that it seems another year at the London Stadium is in no way out of the question.
It’s terrific news for a fan base that has seen the former Manchester City man becoming a hero at the club where he is always a seven out of 10 performer and a genuine role model for the club’s younger players.
And it will be a big boost for the boss Manuel Pellegrini who has worked with him two separate occasions now and clearly trusts him implicitly.
Talking on Sky Sports when asked by reporters if retirement will be an option at the end of the season he said: “No, no, no. I will be 34 in January and I love football so much.
“If I continue to play in every game it means I can go on for a few more years. When you are in your thirties you cannot think about long term but I’m not thinking about retirement. If I can go on for another few years I will because I have so much love for football.”
Zaba has now played 13 of the 28 games required for him to trigger an automatic extension of his Hammers contract.
If he triggers that number of games or not I think we have to be offering an extension. To simply have the guy around the club is a bonus and whilst we do need to be replacing him in the next couple of seasons he has proven age is no barrier to still competing and his absolute hold over Zaha on Saturday was evidence of that with all Zaha’s skill and pace reading of the game and commitment won that battle. Fredericks is a good addition but we either need to throw young Ben Johnson in and around the squad or replace Fredericks as a back up in January as we can’t keep using Antonio as a right back replacement. He isn’t a RB and should not be asked to do so any more. I think the role that was asked of him by Billic was right to do so, if you look at complete turn around for Victor Moses doing that job but Antonio is not a footballer with a footballers brain and can’t adapt to it.
Agree Wjo top professional, Stuart Pearce was still going a long well at 38 so I think Zaba has a few years left in him yet, he is an outstanding defender as well as being great offensively and he sets the tone for his fellow team mates by winning tackles and being a thorn in the opponents sides. Left back is the real problem position provided Zaba can stay fit on the right.