Nuno Espirito Santo always had the October international break circled as a big moment in his West Ham United tenure.
Speaking after the 2-0 defeat by Arsenal last weekend – West Ham defended well at the Emirates but lacked even the briefest hint of a threat going in the other direction – Nuno spelled out his plan to use the international break to bring out the improvements required.
“[This week] is going to be very useful in terms of settling down the mind and focusing,” Graham Potter’s West Ham United replacement said. “All the aspects of the game we have to address.”
Of course, with Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Malick Diouf and co all representing their countries, there were a few familiar faces missing at Rush Green.
Yet, Nuno still has the likes of Soungoutou Magassa, Freddie Potts, Callum Wilson, Jean-Clair Todibo and Luis Guilherme at his disposal.
And, in a highlight reel posted by the official West Ham YouTube channel on Friday, it appears that Magassa and Guilherme in particular are seizing the chance to catch Nuno’s eye in the absence of their more established teammates.
West Ham United fans excited by Luis Guilherme and Soungoutou Magassa
By his own admission, former Monaco ace Magassa is still adapting to Premier League life. It is a lot more intense, he says, than France’s top-flight.
During his first few appearances this side of the Channel, Magassa has looked every inch a footballer looking to get to grips with his new environment. Two weeks on the training pitch should help.
As for Guilherme, the Brazilian teenager will have been enthused by the comments Nuno made before that Arsenal clash. The new West Ham boss wants to give youth a chance. They say actions speak louder than words, though, and Nuno proved he is not all talk.
Potts has featured more already than he did under Potter, while Nuno introduced Callum Marshall over Callum Wilson at the Emirates.
Guilherme has played only 13 minutes of football post-Potter so far. More opportunities should be forthcoming, though, if the £25 million signing from Palmeiras continues to perform like this on the training pitch.
“Guilherme is such a baller. Need him starting more games man,” one fan wrote in response to that training video, watching the Brazil Under-20 starlet breeze past the likes of James Ward-Prowse and Magassa in a few small-sided games at Rush Green.
Furthermore, after it was confirmed that Niclas Fullkrug has torn a thigh muscle and will be unavailable for the next few weeks, a re-jigged frontline in the big German’s absence could present Nuno with an opportunity to give Guilherme what would be only a second Premier League start.
“Put Bowen at striker and put Guilherme on the right,” another fan says.
“Guilherme doing bits!”
“Damn, Guilherme looking very sharp. He could definitely get in the starting XI against Brentford [on October 20th].”
Magassa shows shooting ability up against James Ward-Prowse
The fact that the video opened with Magassa cutting inside away from Ward-Prowse and curling a fine finish into the top corner did not go unnoticed.
While Nuno bombed Ward-Prowse out of the West Ham squad immediately after taking over, the man who left him for dead on the training pitch has yanked his proverbial chain.
Magassa has not scored a single goal at senior level. That, though, does not mean he cannot strike a mean ball.
“Blimey, that first shot from Magassa. Didn’t know he had that in his locker,” one supporter wrote, as another was pleased to spot the likes of Preston Fearon and Mohamadou Kante get the chance to impress Nuno up close.
“Luis looking class. Good to see the young lads there too
“Does this video start with Songou smashing the ball into the net whilst being marked by ‘JWP’? If so, that sends a clear message…”
“If we could play like we trained, we’d win the league!”
Earlier in the week, meanwhile, Crysencio Summerville mentioned Luis Guilherme alongside Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta when ranking about the most skilful players at West Ham.
