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Dimitri Payet out for three months.
Just when I thought that there’s nothing worse than dropping points going into the international break, I open Twitter to see that Dimitri Payet is out for three months with an ankle injury. Yes, three!
Seeing Payet limp off the pitch in the 50th minute against Everton and hearing that he left Upton Park on crutches, the result was now the second thing on my mind. It didn’t matter as much anymore, we all wanted to know what was going on with our #27. Now that’s a testament to how important he has been to our side. When he arrived in the summer we all heard of his amazing assist record but i’d be a liar if I said that I expected him to settle in as well as he has. We’ve had many players at West Ham who have come in for big money yet failed to produce. Heck, some of them are still at the club.
Slaven Bilic- “Payet is a locomotive. The quality of his performances — and the level of opponent he is doing it against — is amazing. For me, he should be in any national team. “
But Payet is special. We all know that the Premier League has been blessed with an abundance of very good number 10′s. David Silva, Mesut Ozil, Oscar and Juan Mata to name a few. Payet has come in, proven his worth and is now mentioned alongside these great players. His ability to see things that no one else does combined with his exquisite technique has made him a joy to watch not only for us West Ham fans, but also everyone else. Then again, the amount of fantasy points that he has got them also helps…
Did you know? According to Squawka, Payet has 2.43 successful take ons per 90 metrics. Ozil, Silva and Mata have 1.25, 1.73 and 0.67 respectively. Also, Payet creates 4 chances per 90 metrics compared to Ozil (5.21), Silva (3.45) and Mata (1.91).
Over the past few seasons at Upton Park we haven’t been lucky enough to witness that many players who have the ability to get us on the edge of our seats whenever they get the ball, Payet is that guy. With another London derby coming up against Tottenham and then facing Manchester United in our next three games there is no doubt that Payet will be a huge miss.
Now, who can replace him?
1. Mauro Zarate.
With Enner Valencia getting injured again, Zarate is the most obvious replacement. He won’t create as much as Payet does nor will he be able to supply that killer pass but he has looked lively whenever he has played. Quick, direct and a constant goal threat Zarate’s two goals of the season have been crucial, scoring against both Arsenal and Chelsea.
Did you know? According to Squawka, Zarate has an ‘attack score’ of 34.47 compared to Payet’s 30.10.
2. No-one can replace Payet!
Although Diafra Sakho missed out on the squad for Everton it was only a minor thigh injury so he should be back for the game against Tottenham. With Andy Carroll back in the side, it would be interesting to see us play with two strikers rather than one with a #10 in behind. It’s a system that Bilic has hardly used this season but with Payet being our top goalscorer, the goals need to come from somewhere else.
With five goals and three assists already this season, Payet has undoubtedly been one of the best and most exciting players in the league. Here’s hoping to a speedy recovery for our Frenchman.
