Former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson believes Kurt Zouma is ‘repaying’ the faith shown in him by David Moyes and West Ham.
The 27-year-old was heavily criticised following a controversial social media video last month and West Ham were facing huge pressure to drop the centre-back.
However, having issued a fine of two weeks’ wages, Moyes contained to utilise Zouma at the heart of the defence.
Speaking to Football Insider, Robinson suggested that the Frenchman’s recent displays were an appreciation of the solidarity from the club.
Look, Zouma is a top-class player regardless of what he has done off the field. You cannot ignore the quality he brings when he plays. He is one of the best centre-halves they have got, if not the best. Yes, he owes the manager a lot for standing by him. His performance against Wolves starts to repay that. Moyes kept playing him and dealt with the situation the way he felt best despite public scrutiny. You have to admire Zouma’s talent on the field. He is a great footballer.
This all comes after Zouma earned an 8.20 Sofascore rating in the 1-0 victory over Wolves. A performance Moyes described as ‘exceptional’ post-match.
So far this season the ace has scored once in 18 appearances across all competitions for the Hammers.
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Having endured a rather sticky patch – not dislike the entire side – Zouma was back to his dominant best against Wolves.
Whilst the punishment handed down may not yet be over for what was a wholly dismal incident, if West Ham are going to finish inside the Premier League top four they will want the £28.8million valued man firing on all cylinders.
Likely to face more backlash from rival supporters, in particular, Zouma will have to put all of that to one side and concentrate on performing for the club that stood by his side when many suggested they shouldn’t.
