David Moyes has been pleasantly surprised with Saïd Benrahma’s work rate and hopes the West Ham winger can strike up a devastating creative partnership with Jesse Lingard.
West Ham made space for Lingard’s arrival on loan from Manchester United last month by bringing forward the £30m signing of Benrahma, who looks increasingly comfortable with the pace of the Premier League. The Algerian made a slow start after moving on loan from Brentford last October, but he dazzled in the victory against Aston Villa on Wednesday and has shown he is not a luxury player.
Benrahma has taken on board Moyes’s advice about improving his ball retention. He created Tomas Soucek’s opener against Villa and linked well with Lingard, who scored twice on his debut. Yet Moyes, whose side would go fourth with a win against Fulham on Saturday evening, feels there is more to come from the 25-year-old and has been more impressed with his willingness to graft.
“I’ve had a bit of a laugh with him because I’m saying to him: ‘I didn’t realise I’d signed a really hard-working midfield player who runs and closes down, and does all the defensive duties,’” West Ham’s manager said. “I said: ‘I thought we got someone for assists and goal making.’ They’re the bits which I think he’s probably needed to improve. The other part has been excellent.
“I want team players here. I don’t want individuals. But Saïd’s been great for the team. The other night there were signs he had a bit of a connection with Jesse. Hopefully it helps Saïd improve. I want to bring Saïd along slowly. He needs time to evolve.”
Moyes spoke about constructing teams, recalling how he added flair when he managed Everton by signing Steven Pienaar and Mikel Arteta. “It took me years to do that,” he said. “I had to go through different stages to get the team up. As you go along, you realise we’d like more flair, more athleticism, more stature. Everybody wants teams to be built immediately.
“I was thinking about it the other day. I now see football management as a marathon and not a sprint. People want to put managers into a sprint race when it should be a marathon. Hopefully I’m still on the marathon and looking forward to getting the last 10 miles down quite easily and quickly.”
