It is incredible that we are having this debate in December. No more than 2 months ago, people were worried that Dimitri Payet may be leaving in January. Now people are trying to hound him out the club. If this was a movie, this would be where there would be a sound of a record scratching and a freeze-frame of Payet unenthusiastically trudging back to the halfway line after the Ashley Fletcher goal against Man United whilst the Frenchman narrates with “That handsome fella? That’s me. You’re probably wondering how I ended up in this situation.” So how did we end up in this situation?
After the year he’s had, Dimi has the right to think he’s kind of a big deal. And who can blame him? After carrying West Ham to an incredible Premier League finish, appearing in the team of the season, he helped France reach the Euro 2016 final, getting nominated for the Ballon d’Or in the process. But since then, his performances have gone slightly off the boil. But have they really?
Picture our last 3 goals in all competitions; Sakho, Fletcher and Carroll. One was a direct assist for Payet, the other 2 were indirect after a Payet shot. But nonetheless, all goals came from Payet. Only Nemanja Matic and Kevin De Bruyne have more assists than Payet in the Premier League and note that West Ham don’t have the luxury of Eden Hazard, Diego Costa or Sergio Aguero for Payet to play through balls to. According to Squawka.com’s player ranking (which takes into account everything that players should be doing for their respective positions), Payet has been the 6th best player of the season. This is in no small part due to the fact he has created the most chances in the league this season and is the only player in the league to have created over 100 chances in the calendar year. So is he really playing as bad as everyone thinks? Maybe the lack of goals come from the strikers who have collectively scored fewer league goals this season than James Tomkins. Just a suggestion.
People are saying that Payet isn’t interested anymore and if you were just basing it on the cup game against Man United then I’d understand. I don’t think I’ve ever seen such as a lazy performance. I was relieved when Zaza came on, which really does say how bad he was. He might have been a bit under the weather or something but that was uncharacteristic from Dimi. Other than that, where is this coming from? You could say in the latter stages against Arsenal he wasn’t trying, but who was? Look at Masuaku for Sanchez’s first goal. Look at our defence for Sanchez’s 3rd. Look at Alvaro Arbeloa for his entire substitute cameo. When your team are playing badly, it’s hard to get the enthusiasm for it. Granted Payet hasn’t played the same way he did last season but how many players have? We can’t solely rely on him.
There’s an unwritten rule in football; under no circumstances should you sell your star players in January, especially for big money. It’s difficult to spend it on good players who want to leave their club. In our current squad, only Sam Byram and Doneil Henry were signed in January. January signings in the recent years have included Savio Nsereko, Benni McCarthy, Mido, Brian Montenegro, Chamakh, Wellington Paulista, Marco Borriello and Emmanuel Emenike. We would probably spend the Payet money on a permanent move for Zaza knowing us.
If his performances in future games – especially the four vital games after Liverpool – are lazy and slapdash, then I fully understand if fans want him to go. But as of yet, he is our most gifted player, probably the most gifted player to wear a West Ham shirt in my lifetime. Just remember that he has been nominated for the Ballon D’Or this year making him the 4th West Ham player to be nominated for the prestigious award. The other three? Hurst, Moore and Peters. Dimitri Payet is a rare gem, and if we lose him, we will not replace him.
