It has been a mixed season so far for West Ham’s Kyle Walker-Peters.
In some games, the Hammers right-back has looked unplayable. In wins against Portsmouth and Wrexham, the former Southampton man has looked far too good for Championship opposition.
His link-up play with Jarrod Bowen on the Irons’ right has been outstanding at times, and his progressive runs have helped to create space for West Ham’s attackers.
However, in other games, the 29-year-old has really struggled. Although he showed good composure on the ball at Bolton, Kyliane Dong caused Walker-Peters plenty of problems on the Wanderers’ left. This included winning a penalty for his side after he was fouled by Walker-Peters himself.
Additionally, in West Ham’s last two games, the right-back has been exposed. Against Fulham, the Irons were extremely fragile on their right-hand side. Two of the Cottagers’ goals came down that side, and more could have followed.
Following that was the Millwall game on Saturday, where the Irons put in a horrific first-half performance and Walker-Peters was hooked at half-time. Following the change, Nuno Espírito Santo’s side scored twice to clinch a draw at The Den.
It’s clear that, while Walker-Peters has put in some good performances this season, West Ham are missing Joël Veltman, who came off injured against Wrexham ten days ago.
The Hammers are in a lucrative position in the Championship, where they have two competent right-backs at their disposal. Walker-Peters reads the game well and is generally a good one-on-one defender. But his short stature and lack of physicality can catch him out in the boisterous second tier.
He also hasn’t been particularly helped defensively by Divine Mukasa, Jarrod Bowen or whoever has played on the right wing in the last few games.
But the international break has come at a good time for this in-form West Ham side. It will give Veltman time to recover and should give Walker-Peters more time on the training ground to work on the shortcomings of his game with Nuno.
