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View: Harrison Ashby must improve performance after West Ham United exit talk
West Ham United youngster Harrison Ashby must improve his performance after transfer speculation grew over his future at the London Stadium.
The Sun’s Alan Nixon reported (4 September) that Leeds United are expected to make another move for the 20-year-old right back after failing to land him in the summer window.
Sky Sports also reported on 1 September that Newcastle United were also in talks with West Ham over a move for the defender.
Ashby featured for the Hammers in their 3-1 UEFA Conference League victory over Viborg at the London Stadium in what has been his only appearance of the 2022/23 campaign.
If Ashby wants to continue to be highly thought of, then he must improve upon his performance against the Danish side.
Firstly, the 20-year-old didn’t stand up well to the duels that he faced in the match at the London Stadium. As per Wyscout, Ashby only managed a 25 per cent duel success rate against Viborg.
This displays that he wasn’t eager to get stuck in and really demonstrates that he could match the physical demands of men’s first-team football.
His career average is 50 per cent so it’s a significant drop from what Ashby is capable of and this could well be down to the speculation surrounding his future at the club.
Furthermore, his passing quality was significantly lower than what he has previously shown, particularly into the final third.
His crossing accuracy was 22 per cent worse than what it usually is and his passing to the final third was 12 per cent less accurate than his career average.
Ashby is highly thought of at West Ham and is clearly admired elsewhere, however, if wishes to progress in his career, he must show that he can maintain high levels of quality in every game no matter who he is up against.
Finally, against Viborg, the 20-year-old didn’t even attempt a dribble at the opposition full-back. For the right back to stand out and be linked to a big move away, he must take risks and show something different.
The Scotland under-21 international is a talented player, but the transfer speculation has clearly impacted on his performance. It’s time for him to knuckle down and display when the likes of Leeds United are after his services.
In other West Ham news, Armando Broja has been told to leave Chelsea amid interest from the Hammers