“Odd Man Out” | Soucek Set For Struggle at All New West Ham
West Ham’s Tomas Soucek is an easy player to admire and understandably a fan favourite. His never-say-die attitude, incredible work rate, and ability to score important goals always have me willing him to do well.
Moreover, Soucek is a likable fella who has fully embraced the culture and history of West Ham and clearly loves playing for the club. However, I couldn’t help but feel a little bit sad for the Czech midfielder as he attempted to make the case that he can perform in a possession-based, technical footballing side. In many respects, it felt like a closing statement, as if Soucek was trying to convince everybody that his skill set was something different from what we’ve witnessed at West Ham during his career.
It could be argued that Soucek is a versatile footballer, just the wrong kind. When he first moved to the London Stadium, he was a marauding, goal-scoring box-to-box midfielder who was full of relentless running and energy.
As has now been documented, his midfield role changed to accommodate the blossoming talents of Declan Rice, which required Soucek to perform a more defensive role. And he was good at it too; a brief look at his statistics shows a player with impressive numbers for defensive headers, blocks, and interceptions.
All action hero: Soucek put his body on the line
If any football manager in the world was on the lookout for a footballer who would throw themselves in front of a ball with little regard for their own safety, then Tomas Soucek would be at the top of the list.
Unfortunately for Big Sou, despite all his obvious qualities, what he does lack are technique, vision, passing range, and the ability to move his feet quickly. It is a deficiency in these skill sets that I believe will mean he is unable to flourish under Lopetegui.
With West Ham seemingly in the market for an additional midfielder, competition will be fierce at the London Stadium next season. Edson Alvarez and Lucas Paqueta would appear to be nailed-on regular starters for the Hammers, which by my reckoning leaves one available position.
The obvious answer is, of course, James Ward-Prowse, who is far better suited to Lopetegui’s position-based football ideology. However, even JWP would have seen himself jettisoned from the team had West Ham been successful with their transfer bid for Aleix Garcia.
Factor in the emergence of new Hammers cult hero Andy Irving and the likelihood that either Lewis Orford or Freddie Potts will feature regularly in the West Ham squad this season, and it quickly becomes clear that opportunities for Tomas Soucek to start Premier League games for the Hammers next season could be limited.
Perhaps I’m wrong; maybe there is some set of circumstances or positional change that would mean the big Czech midfielder would feature under Lopetegui. But unfortunately, as things stand, I just can’t see a West Ham future for a player who has been an amazing servant to the club.
