Micah Richards says West Ham United right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka has major defensive problems.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka joined West Ham for £15m from Manchester United last month and has already impressed at the London Stadium.
Julen Lopetegui added Aaron Wan-Bissaka to his ranks at West Ham in the summer, along with eight other new signings.
The Hammers head coach has strengthened his squad to infinity this summer, but there is a real argument that Wan-Bissaka has been the best signing.
It’s hard to believe the fact that West Ham only shelled out £15m for the 26-year-old, but what’s even more incredible is that we had almost no competition in the race for his signature.
I have no doubt that the former Crystal Palace right-back will become an extremely important player for the Hammers.
However, Richards shared a caveat with us.
Micah Richards spots problems with West Ham’s Aaron Wan-Bissaka
The Sky Sports pundit was a right-back at the highest level himself, so he should know the details of what it takes to succeed in this particular position.
He was a top player in his time, so you should take his words with a lot of faith.
However, I think his recent comments about Hammers right-back Wan-Bissaka were a bit off the mark.
The former Manchester United man has consistently proven himself to be one of the best when it comes to defending over the last five or six years.
However, Richards noticed a particularly weak link in his armor.
The former Manchester City defender was a guest in the Sky Sports studio for West Ham’s clash with Manchester City and discussed the impact Wan-Bissaka could have at the London Stadium (August 31, 5.16pm).
Richards said: “Obviously I think he’s got experience but his one-on-one defending is some of the best I’ve ever seen in the Premier League. Sometimes I see him at full-back, sometimes he doesn’t know how to defend the far post, so sometimes he watches the ball, but when it comes to his one-on-one defense, he’s the best signing.”
Richards hard against Wan-Bissaka
Micah’s criticism is a bit harsh if you ask me.
I understand what Richards is saying, but in my opinion Wan-Bissaka is not bad at defending the far post.
And his one-on-one ability far outweighs any parts of his game that may not be as good as they should be.
The 26-year-old has been a transformational signing for the Hammers and is a huge upgrade on Vladimir Coufalo, there’s no doubt about that.
His pace and strength on the right wing will take us to a whole new level and he has already shown how important a player he will be for us.
Micah Richards pointed out a particular weakness that he believes Aaron Wan-Bissaka has, but I honestly think it was just criticism.
Aaron is a top player and he makes us a much better team.