West Ham’s struggles this season have been very well documented. The Hammers are in a position where they could find themselves facing relegation if things aren’t rectified quickly, and whilst things do look bleak, the Irons have got one youngster who is very much on the mend.
This January transfer window has seen a lot of West Ham youngsters depart the club on both loans and permanent transfers, and whilst that doesn’t mean an awful lot to those who turn up to the London Stadium every week to watch the senior side, one starlet could help them out greatly.
That man is the young versatile full-back Ben Johnson. This season has seen West ham first struggle with their left-backs, as neither Aaron Cresswell nor Arthur Masuaku could nail down the role on the left of the defence, and now the right-back role is causing drama.
This time, it’s because the two right-backs at the club, Ryan Fredericks and Pablo Zabaleta, are struggling. Fredericks is currently out injured, and as good as Zabaleta once was when he was in his prime for Manchester City, the veteran Argentine has lost all the pace he once had and now looks out of his depth.
That’s where Johnson would come in. The defender is still just a kid in footballing terms, at the age of just 20-years-old he’s yet to play a senior game this season and has just one senior appearance to his name for the club, but there are great things that have been said about the youngster and he happens to be coming through as a player who can plug a gap in a problem area.
Is Ryan Fredericks good enough?
Yes
No
We’re not expecting the youngster to come into the Hammers’ first team, win Hammer of the Year and keep the Irons up on his own, but having him to add to a struggling backline, hopefully being able to add some attacking width and pace as well as hold up defensively would make a huge difference to this shaky West Ham team.
