West Ham United midfielder Edson Alvarez is clearly a very big fan of one of his teammates.
However, he’s not one of the names who you would expect.
West Ham brought Edson Alvarez to the London Stadium from Ajax in the summer of 2023 for around £34 million.
As far as I’m concerned, Edson Alvarez is the glue that holds this West Ham team together.
His ability to receive the ball from his defenders in tight areas, and not panic in possession is crucial to our hopes of playing out from the back.
With Julen Lopetegui clearly desperate to implement a new playing style, Alvarez will be vital to the Spaniard’s hopes of implementing his system successfully.
There’s no doubting that he’s a crucial player for us, but there’s someone else who is vitally important to this team who is perhaps going under the radar.
Alvarez clearly thinks very highly of one of his teammates at the London Stadium.
Edson Alvarez names West Ham teammate he loves playing with
There are plenty of top-class players at the London Stadium now.
Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus are widely believed to be the Hammers’ best and most talented footballers.
However, Lopetegui has plenty more who are of the very highest level amongst his ranks as well.
Guido Rodriguez is one of those players. Signed on a free transfer in the summer, the 30-year-old already looks like a great addition to the squad.
And his old mate Alvarez clearly loves him.
The former Ajax man has been speaking to WHUFC.com about the quality of the Hammers’ squad.
The Mexico international said “I always love lining up with Guido, who I know well from my time at Club América in Mexico.“
Alvarez and Rodriguez should form a really solid double pivot for West Ham.
The signs are already very promising, but as time goes by I’m sure we’ll see them grow stronger and stronger as a unit.
Alvarez and Rodriguez a match made in heaven
The 30-year-old midfielder spoke to the Mexico international before he moved to the London Stadium this summer:
“I spoke to Edson (Alvarez) before signing, and we’re both really looking forward to working together again.“
The former Real Betis man is perfectly suited to Premier League football, and his tenacious playing style gives us something we really lacked before, especially when Alvarez wasn’t playing.
Tony Gale actually suggested that Rodriguez looked unfit during our clash with Fulham. I think that was a little harsh – he just needs a few more weeks to get up to speed with the pace of Premier League football.
The Argentinian midfielder will end up being a huge hit for West Ham, I have absolutely no doubts about that.
Guido Rodriguez playing alongside Edson Alvarez in the middle of the park for West Ham is a sign in itself of just how far we’ve come as a club.
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