Lucas Paqueta and Niclas Fullkrug hogged the headlines after Graham Potter’s West Ham United came from behind to beat David Moyes’ Everton in the Premier League Summer Series this week.
And understandably so.
One day before Lucas Paqueta was finally cleared of spot-fixing charges, the Brazilian provided a timely reminder of his match-changing qualities albeit with an equaliser borne out of good fortune and an assist from which Niclas Fullkrug did much of the work.
Fullkrug’s ‘ridiculous’ finish was enough for West Ham to get three points on the board in this four-team summer tournament.
But on a Windy City afternoon in which Luis Guilherme, Callum Marshall and Freddie Potts impressed – three youngsters doing their hopes of regular first-team involvement no harm – a couple of oft-maligned central defenders also caught the eye.
And, with Konstantinos Mavropanos and Nayef Aguerd increasingly likely to still be West Ham United players when September arrives, a couple of promising displays over in the USA bodes well as Potter looks to nail-down his first-choice backline.
Roma looked at West Ham United duo Konstantinos Mavropanos and Nayef Aguerd
Mavropanos was labelled a ‘terrible’ signing at £17 million by former England striker Darren Bent just last month.
But, with Potter fielding a three-man backline against Man United and Everton, perhaps the West Ham are faithful are about to see the best of the one-time Arsenal man. Mavropanos was excellent up against the pace and mobility of Everton’s new £27 million striker Thierno Barry in the middle of a back three.
Nayef Aguerd entered the fray at half-time, meanwhile.
Back in claret and blue after Real Sociedad opted against a permanent deal for the Morocco international, Aguerd’s left-footed, line-breaking passes could come in very handy under a coach who likes to build from the back.
According to Italian journalist Gianluca di Marzio, Roma held talks with Konstantinos Mavropanos around a month ago. The Serie A outfit reportedly made a £15 million bid for Aguerd too, offering two expensively-acquired central defenders a route out of the London Stadium.
But with Roma sealing an £9 million deal for Daniele Ghilardi of Hellas Verona on Thursday, the door to the Italian capital appears to have closed for Aguerd and Mavropanos.
Fortunately, while West Ham need further sales if they are to pursue their more expensively-priced transfer targets before the transfer deadline, both the Moroccan and the Greek seem ready to belatedly make their mark if that Everton clash is a sign of things to come.
Niclas Fullkrug hails Mavropanos and Aguerd after Everton win
Speaking after his fierce left-footed strike fizzed past Mark Travers at Soldier Field, Fullkrug spoke in glowing terms about the contributions of his West Ham teammates at the other end of the pitch.
“There were good performances all over the pitch – Dinos [Mavropanos] did very well in my opinion, JC [Todibo], Max [Kilman], Nayef [Aguerd] – they tried to find new positions to play the ball in between the lines and it worked out very well,” Fullkrug said.
“We’re all just looking forward to the rest of this trip now, trying to get another win and of course getting ready to be at our best for when the Premier League is back.”
It is not only Mavropanos and Aguerd who could be revitalised in a Potter-coached back three.
Max Kilman also looks more comfortable on the left of a defensive triumvirate; a repeat of the role he nailed down at Wolves when next to the more physically imposing Craig Dawson.
“I believe in energy, and if you use positive energy, the positive things will come to you as a group, as a player and as a human,” Fullkrug adds, the mood in the West Ham camp particularly breezy.
“That’s why I try to smile and I try to bring positive energy everywhere. I don’t do it on purpose or something, it’s just because I believe when you use positive energy, you get positive energy back and then the positives will come to you.
“There’s a lot to be positive about at the moment, in my opinion, and hopefully we can take that into the next game. We were playing against [an Everton] team known to defend very well, and we coped with it.”
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