West Ham United suffered a crushing 4-1 defeat against rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.
The Hammers have only won two of their first eight Premier League games (D2, L4) and sit in 15th place.
Despite West Ham taking the early lead through the later dismissed Mohammed Kudus, Spurs equalised ten minutes to the break before blitzing three past Alphonse Areola in the second half.
The France international goalkeeper was adjudged to have scored an own goal in the 55th minute when his initial save ricocheted off Jean-Clair Todibo and into the back of the net.
Todibo, like Areola, had a day to forget in the rearguard, with the Sunday Mirror rating him 5/10 and claiming he endured a ‘horror afternoon’ against Spurs.
The former Barcelona defender should have stopped the pass for the Yves Bissouma goal and had to do better against Heung-min Son for the last one.
However, while manager Julen Lopetegui might be tempted to drop him for Konstantinos Mavropanos, he must stick with the shaky Frenchman through this horrendous spell.
Todibo was signed this summer to partner with Max Kilman in central defence for the long term. This partnership was to be the platform that would allow the rest of the team to shine, but it has not happened.
Todibo needs time to understand this new defensive collaboration. He initially struggled in his early days at Nice before he struck up an excellent playing relationship with Dante.
His first half-season back in France was unremarkable, as Nice shipped 54 league goals, but he began to find form after they took the punt to buy him permanently.
West Ham must give him time to get used to playing with Kilman. He has more upside than Mavropanos, and his quality will eventually shine through.
Todibo won most of his defensive duels against Spurs, coming out on top in his one aerial battle and four of five on the ground.
He was also solid on the ball, playing one key pass and completing 33 of 36. He also completed three out of six attempted long balls.
Todibo is not the only player struggling in Lopetegui’s confusing set-up. Crysencio Summerville, Guido Rodriguez, and Carlos Soler have not been particularly convincing.
The Hammers must remain patient with Todibo and the rest of the squad. The blame lies with the manager, who must turn things around or suffer the consequences.
This team’s individual quality is undeniable, and with the right tactics and support, they can climb the Premier League table.
