Another West Ham United matchday, and another day in which Alphonse Areola made the prospect of dropping points that little bit more palatable.
Is he in the form of his claret and blue career right now? If not, then he must be pretty close.
Areola was ‘incredible’ at AFC Bournemouth as he almost single-handedly prevented the home side from turning a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 victory.
West Ham United’s number one then kept the scoreline somewhat respectable against an admittedly-dreadful Liverpool outfit, provided the platform for a late draw at Old Trafford, and pulled off a handful of inspired stops once again before Brighton enraged Nuno Espirito Santo with an equaliser of the most contentious variety.
Areola has been so impressive – not only with regards to his shot-stopping but also his ability to deal with set-pieces – that a return to the starting XI for Mads Hermansen now feels distinctly fanciful.
As for a potential swap deal involving Lazio glovesman Christos Mandas, well, there may be shorter odds on this happening than Hermansen seizing the gloves back from an excellent Alphonse Areola.
Christos Mandas speaks out on Lazio future after West Ham United links
Nuno insisted that Hermansen would get his chance again, shortly after taking over from Graham Potter at the end of September.
Three months on, the £18 million signing from Leicester City seems even further away from a return to the team sheet. Areola’s grip on the gloves is stronger than ever.
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And with reports suggesting that Lazio could offer Hermansen an escape from his London Stadium nightmare, West Ham’s alleged interest in Christos Mandas opens the door to a potential January exchange.
According to La Lazio Siamo Noi, the Hammers have enquired about the Greek international’s availability, alongside Bournemouth and Fiorentina.
Mandas confirmed an approach from Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City a few months ago. He has also been heavily linked with Wolves, in recent times.
Now, having slipped behind Ivan Provedel in the pecking order of former Chelsea and Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri, a change of scenery may appeal.
Though speaking to Tuttomercatoweb, shortly after making his first appearance of 2025/26 in a 1-0 Coppa Italia victory over AC Milan, Mandas kept his cards relatively close to his chest.
“I’m ready to help the team when needed. It was very important that I played [against Milan], I’m happy,” said the former OFI Crete keeper, who is reportedly valued at around £9 million.
“The group is united. We help each other: this is our way of working. This is our strength, we are a good group. It’s important, let’s keep going like this.”
When quizzed specifically on the prospect of a January move, Mandas replied;
“I haven’t spoken to the club. I’m focused on my work and waiting for my moment. That’s the only way I can improve.
“But I haven’t spoken to anyone. I don’t want to cause problems in this great atmosphere.”
Nuno Espirito Santo lauds Alphonse Areola as Mads Hermansen is stuck on the sidelines
While he remains coy on his immediate plans, one suspects that luring Mandas away from Lazio may be a much easier task for West Ham now than it was for Wolves, when he was still the Biancocelesti’s go-to goalkeeper for Serie A fixtures.
Hammers News have already confirmed that West Ham could ‘cash in’ on Mads Hermansen as early as next month. Presuming they stand a chance of recouping a decent portion of their £18 million investment, of course.
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The stats speak for themselves. West Ham have conceded only 1.6 goals per game on average with Nuno at the helm, compared to 2.6 under Potter. Hermansen, meanwhile, played in all-but one of the five games which preceded Potter’s September sacking.
It is also no coincidence that West Ham’s set-piece record has improved with Areola starting instead.
While the slender Hermansen tended to stay stock-still on his line, his older, more imposing rival has no problems sending a crowd of players tumbling like bowling pins before punching the ball clear.
“We are trying, we are trying [to improve our defensive and attacking set-pieces]. First of all is [for us] to realise that it was a problem that we are slowly trying to fix,” Nuno said between those successive 1-1 away draws at Manchester United and Brighton and Hove Albion.
“We had conceded many goals from set-pieces before. Now I think we are getting stronger and stronger.
“They are basic and fundamental for any kind of team and we are working, working, working, working, repeating, repeating, trying to find [ways to score] in terms of offensive [set-pieces with] the delivery and the consistency of the delivery.
“In terms of defensively, [we are] trying to mark the strong opponents that we are going to find. In these days you know how much importance there is to defending your box.
“I think Alphonse is giving a big, big help in that aspect also.”
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