West Ham United’s Fabian Balbuena returned to action last night.
West Ham United’s Under-23’s were in action on Monday night, but slipped to a disappointing defeat to Blackburn Rovers.
The Hammers first team picked up a 2-0 win over Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon, but their youngsters couldn’t follow suit.
Dan Kemp got on the scoresheet for West Ham, but that couldn’t stop West Ham from falling to a 3-1 defeat to Rovers at the Chigwell Construction Stadium.
The likes of Ben Johnson, Grady Diangana, Nathan Holland and new signing Mesaque Dju were all in action last night, but fans will be most encouraged by Fabian Balbuena’s return.
The Paraguayan international, 27, has been a masterstroke signing for West Ham having arrived from Brazilian side Corinthians in a bargain move last summer.
He had formed a superb partnership with Issa Diop in the heart of the West Ham defence, before suffering an injury against Watford in December.
After more than two months out, Balbuena has been back in training and played 45 minutes last night, building up to a first-team return.
Coach Liam Manning has praised Balbuena’s impact on the club’s official website, helping the young players learn from him whilst simply not making mistakes in the game, and Hammers fans will be delighted to see him return.
“It was a great experience for the players to learn from Balbuena,” said Manning. “He’s had a couple of sessions with us and he’s what senior pros are all about; he doesn’t make mistakes that cost you,” he added.
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