Graham Potter is not a miracle worker, and he won’t be able to change things overnight at West Ham United.
West Ham have definitely looked better as a team since Graham Potter took over, but the football still lacks any kind of cohesion and just seems a little clunky right now.
Graham Potter actually apologised to the West Ham fans after our defeat to Newcastle at the London Stadium on Monday night.
However, there was no need for that whatsoever.
The Hammers fans all have to be patient with Potter, and everything will come together in the end.
Photo by Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images
Photo by Rob Newell – CameraSport via Getty Images
It’s worth remembering that Potter has had to make do without his very best players for large parts of his West Ham tenure as well.
Once he has all of his key players fit and available for selection, the fans will notice a huge difference immediately.
And one man’s absence in particular has been really hard to deal with.
West Ham are badly missing Crysencio Summerville
Losing Crysencio Summerville for two months has hit the Hammers hard.
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We probably didn’t realise at the time just how important he was to the team – specifically Graham Potter’s system.
Summerville joined West Ham from Leeds in the summer of 2024 for a fee believed to be worth around £20 million.
The Dutch winger recently claimed that his increased professionalism since joining the Hammers has led to big improvements from him.
However, he has only played one half of football since Graham Potter’s arrival at the London Stadium.
And that’s hugely disappointing for him, given how bright he looked during that outing against Aston Villa in the FA Cup at the start of January.
Summerville has been out injured with a troublesome hamstring problem ever since then.
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
And the Hammers have badly missed him.
Crysencio Summerville to play in unusual position under Graham Potter
The former Leeds man could well thrive as a wing-back in Potter’s system.
That will represent quite the change for him, having operated as a left winger throughout his entire career to date.
His pace and incredible energy is perfect for the wing-back role, and he could play on either the right or the left hand side.
If Graham Potter uses Crysencio Summerville as a right wing-back for West Ham, Aaron Wan-Bissaka could then play as a right-sided centre-back in a back three, or he could move over to the left wing-back role.
It’s worth noting that the Dutchman could be a really useful option for Graham Potter on either wing as well.
The fact is that West Ham have really missed Crysencio Summerville over the past couple of months, and his return to action could totally transform us as a team.