Central defenders stronger and quicker than Manchester United’s Leny Yoro are few and far between in the Premier League these days, and most certainly at West Ham United.
Right now, selecting the finest centre-back at West Ham United almost feels like your favourite of the post-Macaulay Culkin Home Alone sequels.
A pretty depressing debate which achieves little more than reminding you just how much better things used to be in days gone by.
Nuno Espirito Santo lost Konstantinos Mavropanos to injury during those defeats by Brentford and Leeds. That many supporters are already counting down the days until the Greek international is back available speaks volumes, really, about how Jean-Clair Todibo and Max Kilman have performed in his absence.
So when the West Ham faithful go onto YouTube, type in the name of Alexsandro Ribeiro and see a compilation entitled ‘The World’s Most Technical Centre-back’, uploaded by Ligue 1 specialists Le Talent, well, they could be forgiven for hoping that January brings about happier times.
ESPN Brazil broke the news late last week. West Ham are eyeing Lille stopper Alexsandro ahead of the winter window.
Now, with Hammers News revealing that the Brazil international is Nuno Espirito Santo’s top target for the defensive department, it can be confirmed that the Premier League strugglers are indeed the latest club looking to sate their thirst at Lille’s refreshing watering hole.
From comparisons to Virgil van Dijk and the aforementioned Yoro, while Alexsandro alone may not be able to hold the fort like Hodor restraining a horde of blood-thirsty wights, his addition would be a big step in the right direction.
West Ham United in talks over Lille and Brazil defender Alexsandro
In addition to the aforementioned Leny Yoro, Lille have proven themselves to be elite developers of young defensive talent in recent times.
Sven Botman joined Newcastle from the Stade Pierre Mauroy. Ditto Bafode Diakite and Bournemouth. Gabriel Magalhaes now forms one half of arguably Europe’s finest centre-back partnership, meanwhile, having crossed the Channel with Arsenal.
Alexsandro, like his fellow Brazil international Gabriel, has established himself as a reliable left-sided centre-back in French football. But, as former Les Dogues assistant coach Jorge Maciel explains, the Rio-born 26-year-old is just as comfortable on the right-hand side.
“It is his strongest characteristic, you don’t even know if he’s left-footed or right-footed!,” Maciel told L’Equipe and La Void du Nord. “And he has the ability to play long or short with both feet. For a central defender, that’s incredible.”
“He has all the qualities to become a top-level central defender, playing right-footed, left-footed, short-passes, long-passes.”
West Ham, though, could be forgiven for prioritising a more physically-imposing, tough-tackling, take-no-prisoners sort of centre-back. Like at the aforementioned Manchester United – so relieved to have a reliable, old-school glovesman in Senne Lammens after two years of Andre Onana heart-attack-ball – many Hammers supporters would relish a Craig Dawson clone these days.
‘Warrior’ Alexsandro is far more physical than Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo
Ex-Wolves stalwart Max Kilman was never the most physical. Jean-Clair Todibo, meanwhile, has frequently been found wanting up against the division’s livelier, more aggressive forwards.
Yet, as Maciel is keen to point out, Alexsandro is not all about line-breaking through balls.
“Sometimes, he doesn’t need to put [aggression] into a tackle, but it’s something that suits him because it gets the fans going,” Maciel explained. “He loves it. He makes a tackle, he heads it, he gets the stadium on its feet…
“It’s very Brazilian.”
“He has this very warrior side, when you have to keep the result and go to the fight,” former Lille and now-PSG goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier agrees. “It’s an energy that he gives off, and it gives strength to everyone, even if sometimes send the ball into touch. I like it!”
“He ticks a lot of boxes in what we look for in a central defender today,” added Bruno Genesio, the club’s current head coach. “He’s good with his head, is very quick, is very aggressive in duels, and he’s capable of playing the ball out, either with passes that break lines or with his ball control.”
Per Data MB, while Alexsandro outperforms Kilman and Todibo in terms of ‘progressive passes’, he also ranks far higher than both when it comes to winning his aerial duels too. Alexsandro had a 91 per cent success rate last term, compared to Kilman’s 52 per cent and Todibo’s lowly 11 per cent.
Fellow stats site Fbref, meanwhile, labelled none other than Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk as the player who most closely resembled Alexsandro in the numbers. Tyrone Mings, Malick Thiaw and Edmond Tapsoba, three more centre-backs who combine an excellent passing range with solid defensive abilities, are also mentioned.
Alexsandro is stronger and quicker than Manchester United wonderkid Leny Yoro
Paulo Fonseca, who preceded Genesio at the Stade Pierre Mauroy, had the luxury of choosing between Alexandro and the rising star of Yoro during his time in the Dogues dugout.
While Man United’s £52 million Frenchman arguably possesses greater consistency and composure, Alexsandro relishes the kind of physical battles West Ham’s current centre-halves appear to shy away from.
“They are obviously different players,” Fonseca said. “Leny is very young, but I think he has a strong mentality. Alex is a more physical, fast, and aggressive player. He’s more aggressive than Leny, but I think Leny is more focused than Alex.
“It’s difficult for me to make a choice.”
If Alexsandro is willing to consider a January move to West Ham – albeit ESPN suggest he has his reservations in a World Cup year – then Nuno Espirito Santo will have a much easier ‘choice’ than Fonseca did.
“The Lille player [Alexsandro] was on Nuno’s list when he arrived, and he is the top target,” a top source at the London Stadium tells Hammers News. “Early talks have been held over price and whether the deal can be done, and the signs are good.
“Ideally, Nuno wants him in the building in the first week of January as every game is going to be so important. But the player will need assurances he can be allowed to leave if the worst happens because he wants to go to the World Cup with Brazil.”
