One player head and shoulders the best on the pitch in underwhelming West Ham win

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One player was head and shoulders above everyone else on the pitch in an underwhelming West Ham win over Bournemouth.

West Ham have signed eight players and counting this summer.

So it’s natural there will be debate over who is the pick of the bunch.

The Hammers have pulled off some superb signings with a mix of talent for the future and the here and now.

But any debate over West Ham’s signing of the summer has probably already been settled.

After very much riding their luck in a win over Crystal Palace, the Julen Lopetegui era had lift off with a 2-0 victory.

Max Kilman has looked a class apart in his three games so far.

Guido Rodriguez has impressed too.

But one player was head and shoulders the best on the pitch in the underwhelming West Ham win over Bournemouth.

West Ham edge underwhelming win over Bournemouth

The Hammers welcomed their Premier League rivals to the London Stadium for the club’s first Carabao Cup second round clash since 2021.

The three-year break from such early exertions in this competition the result of West Ham’s European adventures.

All eyes were on Lopetegui’s team selection for the cup game with the expectation he would rotate his squad after making so many new signings.

And so he did with sweeping changes from the side which started against Palace.

West Ham put in a largely underwhelming display matched only by the awful atmosphere inside the London Stadium.

The Hammers were always going to be a work in progress under a new manager trying to implement a new style and with so many new players.

But one star shone brighter than any on display in east London.

One player head and shoulders the best on the pitch

That man being Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

The right-back looks like being the best £15m West Ham have spent for years.

He showed just what he will bring to the Hammers when he came on and changed the game against Palace.

But Wan-Bissaka’s performance against Bournemouth showed what a brilliant capture he is.

Anyone wondering why Wan-Bissaka is nicknamed the spider found out why against Bournemouth.

He was absolutely everywhere, making brilliant last ditch recovery tackles to bail out his team and showing that claims he is not good going forward are laughable.

Wan-Bissaka was not only comfortably the man of the match. He was hands down the best player on the field too along with Kilman.

One look at his statistics below tells its own story.

Quite how and why Man United have allowed him to leave is anyone’s guess.

A quick look on social media shows Red Devils fans have been wondering the same thing.

The best £15m West Ham have spent for years

Wan-Bissaka is dubbed the best one-on-one defensive full-back in the Premier League.

He backed that up and then some keeping Bournemouth’s host of pacy, skilful attackers quiet.

On occasion they actually turned away and passed backwards rather than try and take Wan-Bissaka on.

Vladimir Coufal has been – and continues to be – a tremendous servant for West Ham.

But Wan-Bissaka is the player the Hammers have needed for years.

He will be one of the key players in transforming West Ham under Lopetegui.

West Ham rode their luck once again and had VAR been in use then Jarrod Bowen’s late winner would have been ruled out after striking his forearm.

But a win is a win as they say and the Hammers march on to the third round.

Attentions now turn to Man City where Wan-Bissaka would be the key player if West Ham are to get anything against the Champions.