Lucas Paqueta can be a ‘liability’ for West Ham and his weakness in midfield is similar to another Premier League cult hero.
That’s the view of former Hammers and Newcastle boss Alan Pardew, who has highlighted a main area of concern for the east London side.
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Paqueta is one of West Ham’s most talented players and has been of interest to Manchester City, but has endured a difficult season so far.
The Brazilian has scored just two goals in 15 appearances and was one of a number of struggling players in their 5-2 to defeat to Arsenal.
Speaking on The Final Word, talkSPORT’s Adrian Durham asked if Paqueta should be dropped because ‘sometimes it’s like playing with ten men’.
Pardew then compared him to Hatem Ben Arfa, who was arguably his most gifted player at Newcastle but still had a glaring defect in his game.
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“He’s a player that… I had Ben Arfa at Newcastle who could do things with the ball that, like, you know, top, top level, he had unbelievable talent,” he said.
“He literally had zero defensive qualities in him, he didn’t want to defend, couldn’t defend, even when he did he’d give fouls away and caused a problem. And actually, the players in the team wanted him out of the team more than I did, it was almost like he’s costing us.
“He couldn’t see that of course and he got disgruntled and we had a few issues with him et cetera, et cetera, because he was frustrated. But, as much as we tried to put it in him, some players, it just doesn’t go in, that defensive angle of the game.
“Some don’t want to, to be fair to Ben Arfa, he tried in games, and I think Paqueta is in that frame, he’s almost like a liability at times when you haven’t got the ball, but he’s got unbelievable quality.”
Ben Arfa possessed excellent dribbling skills, pace and flair during his Newcastle stint, making 82 appearances when Pardew was in charge for four years from 2010.
He tallied 13 goals and 16 assists under his management to become a huge fan favourite, though it’s clear his defending needed work.
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Whilst Paqueta may be similar to Ben Arfa and hasn’t hit the heights he’s reached in past seasons for West Ham, Pardew believes they have a more pressing matter.
The 63-year-old, who managed the Hammers from 2003 to 2006, said: “If I was at West Ham, I would play him, but I would certainly look at my back four and look for a bit more pace and a little bit more organisation.
“Because if you’re asking me what their problem is, it’s defending. I can’t see them at the moment, they look wide open at times, particularly when I think they’re at home.
“They look loose, the out ball for the opposition is too easy and when you’re at home, you can’t have the opposition getting out at you, coming out at you, and Arsenal [did it] far too often yesterday.”
West Ham have conceded 24 goals in 13 Premier League matches this season and have just three wins from their last eight.
Their defensive frailties were clear to see against Arsenal as all five of the goals they conceded came before half-time to ensure salvaging a point became a mammoth task.
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Despite a summer spending spree of around £120million, boss Julen Lopetegui has not yet been able to get a tune out of his side.
West Ham are six points clear of the bottom three but already eight points adrift of the European qualification spots.
Lopetegui is under pressure to turn their season around ahead of a busy festive schedule that sees them play six times in December.
However, talkSPORT have reported that West Ham have sounded out ex-Borussia Dortmund boss Edin Terzic as a potential replacement.
