Stats can be misleading at times, as the West Ham United fans may be finding out with one of Nuno Esprito Santo’s January signings.
Instead of a Callum Wilson replacement, have the Hammers landed themselves another Pablo Fornals-style, all-action attacking midfielder? Less of a Niclas Fullkrug upgrade, and perhaps Tomas Soucek’s long-term replacement?
Pablo Felipe’s conversation rate was higher than Erling Haaland’s and even Harry Kane’s during the first half of the 2025/26 campaign. The Braga-born forward arrived at West Ham United having scored 10 goals in his final 13 Primeira Liga starts for Gil Vicente.
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The expectation, then, was that Pablo would spend much of his time camped inside the opposition penalty area, sniffing out chances like a keen truffle pig.
The reality of Pablo Felipe, though, is proving to be very different. As Nuno Espirito Santo’s side suffered a valiant 3-2 London derby defeat away at Chelsea, another battling performance from the £18.4 million signing saw comparisons drawn with Fornals, Soucek and even Michail Antonio.
Gary Neville hails Pablo Felipe and Taty Castellanos as West Ham United lose at Chelsea
Both of West Ham’s £44 million forwards, Pablo and Taty Castellanos, have now gone four Premier League matches without finding the net.
While Castellanos did have chances at Stamford Bridge – firing straight at Robert Sanchez when well-placed early on and fizzing one wide in the second-half – Pablo did not manage a single shot during his 66 minutes on the pitch.
What he did do, though, is win the joint-most tackles and the joint-most aerial duels of any West Ham player.
“[The forwards] have done well, both [Castellanos] and Pablo were a handful,” Gary Neville said during Sky Sports’ live coverage.
Everyone knows West Ham love a maverick. But there will always be a place in the heart of the fans for workhorses whose love for the badge makes up for a lack of elite-level talent.
That is maybe harsh on Fornals – the now-Real Betis talisman is back in the Spain reckoning ahead of the 2026 World Cup – but it rings true of Soucek, Vladimir Coufal, Craig Dawson and co. Maybe Pablo, with a few goals here and there in the weeks to come, could enter such discussions.
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Pablo Fornals and Tomas Soucek comparisons made with January signing
“Pablo Felipe’s work ethic reminds me of another Pablo we had…” one West Ham fan wrote on X.
“[Pablo] reminds me of Pablo Fornals,” another agrees. “It’s the way he runs, scurrying with arms everywhere too for me.
West Ham’s new Pablo Fornals? 💡
What did you make of Pablo Felipe's all-action display at Chelsea?
“Pablo is gonna be one of those guys that suffers the same issue as Soucek long term. Not great on the eye so suffers criticism, but my God he works hard and that can’t be understated so far.”
“We pretty much have signed the right characters too, with Taty who gives 100 per cent also.”
“I was so, so, so, so wrong [about Pablo]. What a player he is, the way he holds it up and makes space for everyone up front. Not the goalscorer we thought, but something much more.”
“Pablo was drenched in sweat around the 30th minute. The guy is a workaholic! Not sure if it was picked up on camera, but [assistant coach] Paco Jemez pulled Pablo to one side during the break-in play and told him to be more physical.
“Taty and Pablo have changed the way we can attack as a team. [Crysencio] Summerville has been transformed and [Jarrod] Bowen doesn’t have to do everything himself! There’s a long way to go but it’s so enjoyable to see.
“The reason why Antonio was so important for us – in a different way – always occupying the back line. Their work rate from the front is unreal!
“Off the ball work rate is off the charts!”
“They put so much pressure on up top. It allows everyone else to play. More to being a striker then scoring goals.”
Then again, on a day when West Ham stormed into a 2-0 lead and then lacked the ruthlessness to kill the game off, a few goals would not go amiss…
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