A player offered to West Ham United this summer put a current Hammers star in the shade at the weekend.
As reported by Sky Sports earlier this year, West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic opted not to sign Renato Sanches on loan this summer despite being offered the Portuguese international prior to his switch to Swansea City.
The problem for the Hammers is that skipper Mark Noble continues to under-perform and he was overshadowed by Sanches when the two came face-to-face at the London Stadium on Saturday.
West Ham ultimately secured all three points courtesy of a late Diafra Sakho strike but that should not prevent the continued criticism directed at Noble.
After all, while he may be West Ham through and through, the 30-year-old has offered little for months and Bilic really needs more sparkle from his midfield options.
That is something Sanches has in abundance and, while the 20-year-old took some time to get used to his new surroundings, he is now beginning to prove his worth to Swansea.
Sanches gave Noble the run-around on Saturday and one wonders what might have been if the former had been given the chance to turn out for West Ham this season.
Instead he was the latest player to show just how far the Hammers man has fallen, and it is surely only a matter of time before the penny drops with Bilic, too.
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