Pablo Zabaleta Insists West Ham Have Really Missed Injured Star After Tough Start

Pablo Zabaleta has claimed that West Ham have struggled in the absence of their star man and 'sole creator' Manuel Lanzini.

The former Manchester City full-back's Argentinian compatriot has suffered two knee injuries since pre-season, and only made his first appearance of the season against Swansea at the weekend.

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His substitution helped to inspire a late victory, but the Hammers have really struggled in the new season so far, and Zabaleta thinks Lanzini has been a huge miss.

He told the Star: "I think what we are missing at some points in the game is that creativity that you need to create chances, to keep the ball.

"Sometimes we play so quickly that we gave the ball away so this is something we need to improve. We’ve been missing Manu so far this season and he’s probably the only player we have to create [chances], and at least to keep the ball a little bit more.

"[He is] a player to play in the hole, between the lines, and that was a big difference when Manu came on."

Irons supporters will have been buoyed by the return on Lanzini at the London Stadium, and will be expecting to see him start after the international break - new signing Javier Hernandez has scored three league goals so far but has been feeding off scraps.