Adama Traore has a genuine reason to be frustrated with Nuno Espirito Santo after West Ham’s draw against Crystal Palace.
The Hammers settled for a 0-0 draw on Monday night as none of the five attacking players involved could score.
Many supporters have argued that it was a massive missed opportunity and that Nuno should have taken more risks.
One option Nuno turned down was to bring Traore on as a second-half substitute, but he left the Spaniard on the bench.
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Adama Traore must be frustrated with Nuno Espirito Santo
Adama Traore has rarely started for West Ham since arriving from Fulham for £1 million in the January transfer window.
The winger has usually been an impact substitute, as his electric pace and power can trouble fatigued defenders.
So, with West Ham chasing a goal in the second half against Palace, most fans would have expected Traore to come on.
Instead, Nuno decided to keep him on the bench and keep his faith in Crysencio Summerville and Jarrod Bowen out wide.
This was particularly surprising because neither Summerville nor Bowen came close to breaking the deadlock at any point.
Bowen was especially poor, with one of his least effective performances in a claret and blue shirt for quite some time.
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Given his struggles, as well as Taty Castellanos and Pablo Felipe offering little up front, Traore could have been the difference.
It made no sense for Nuno not to give him at least 15 minutes to try to make something happen at Selhurst Park.
Traore’s exclusion has raised significant doubts about Nuno’s faith in him heading into the final five games of the season.
Perhaps, we are unlikely to see him feature much more, as Nuno puts trust in his favourites to play all 90 minutes.
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