West Ham fans all say the same about Taty Castellanos debut vs Nottingham Forest: ‘Insane’
West Ham supporters were treated to seeing Taty Castellanos during his first appearance in West Ham colours against Nottingham Forest on Tuesday.
The Hammers have already added two strikers to the squad during the January transfer window, with Football Insider understanding that Callum Wilson could now leave West Ham.
Nuno Espirito Santo is under tremendous pressure at the London Stadium, and after losing a Premier League six-pointer 2-1 on 6 January, his time in charge could already be over.
That is exactly why Castellanos was thrown straight into the lineup, despite only being announced the day before, and he made an instant impression on the match-going supporters.
David Sullivan has signed off on deals for some woeful strikers over the years, but the early signs on this occasion appear to be positive.
Taty Castellanos impresses the West Ham faithful
One supporter quickly labelled his pressing “insane” and something “we’ve massively missed,” and he gave the home side a much-needed focal point in the final third.
He almost played a key role in an early second for the Hammers, but with a controversial intervention from VAR at Stockley Park, celebrations were cut short after a fine finish from Crysencio Summerville.
Multiple supporters believe that Castellanos’ work rate is “exactly” what West Ham have been missing, with some even growing in confidence that Premier League survival is still possible.
- @Dstar125: “Yeah, Taty pressing players and running non-stop. We don’t do that here.”
- @BabblingIrons: “We’ve done a professional job so far. Nice to see them actually chasing down Forest players. Taty is setting the tone with his pressing & the rest are responding. Need to keep this going, lads!!
- @uptheh4mmer5: “Castellanos’ work rate is exactly what we’ve been missing.”
Castellanos’ performance by numbers vs Nottingham Forest
Despite having the fewest touches of anyone on the pitch to play 90 minutes, 22, he gave the Hammers a good way out, and he continued to run for the entire game [FotMob].
The 27-year-old created two chances, had three shots, one of which was on target, missed two big chances, which will only improve with time, and made four passes into the final third.
He was also not afraid to get involved in a challenge, diving into three ground duels as well as nine aerial duels, while also committing two fouls.
He is so much more dynamic in the final third than Wilson, and because very little has been seen of Pablo yet, Nuno will need to stick with the new signing. That could pay off in the long run.