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Pablo Zabaleta impressed by solid West Ham defence
Pablo Zabaleta has been impressed by West Ham’s backline so far this season and feels they have looked solid.
After the 5-0 defeat to Manchester City on the opening day, the Hammers have have conceded just two goals in their next four Premier League games.
Hammers manager Manuel Pellegrini appears to have settled on a back four, something which he found difficult to do last season.
Angelo Ogbonna and Issa Diop have been the centre-back combination in the last four league matches, with Ryan Fredericks and Arthur Masuaku at full-back.
But Masuaku will be absent on Sunday for the home clash against Manchester United, as he serves a one-game suspension for his red card against Aston Villa.
It’s key that the defence finds some consistency and they have a better chance of qualifying for Europe if they are solid at the back.
West Ham’s veteran defender has praised the back four for their recent displays.
“Defensively I think we’ve been really solid, especially in the last two games where we’ve kept a clean sheet,”
TBR’s View:
With West Ham’s defence catching the eye, should Fabian Balbuena be worried?
The 28-year-old centre-back has had to watch on from the sidelines recently and his only league start so far this season came in the mauling against Manchester City.
He is a no-nonsense defender that played regularly last year when available, but it looks like he’s got a sizeable task to break back into the XI.
Diop and Ogbonna appear to be striking up a decent combination in the heart of defence, which must be a concern for Balbuena.
The Paraguay international has at times looked a real leader on the pitch for the Hammers, but needs to cut out silly errors if he wants to be back in the side.