Manchester United fans were happy with Willy Kambwala’s debut despite the disappointing 2-0 defeat at the London Stadium.
Erik ten Hag’s side suffered their 13th defeat of the season on the back of a scoreless draw against Liverpool at Anfield, with United yet to get on a proper winning run this season. Nobody can underplay the injury crisis that has hit United this term either.
The manager was dealt a further injury blow with Victor Lindelof becoming the latest United defender sidelined. Raphael Varane missed the trip to West Ham with illness, too.
Elsewhere, Harry Maguire is out of action for a few weeks and Lisandro Martinez has been out since the beginning of the campaign with a reoccurring metatarsal injury.
That made for breaking news ahead of kick-off that Willy Kambwala had been called into the starting line-up to make his debut. The news brought excitement from respected French reporter Julien Laurens.
Really happy and excited for Willy Kambwala to start today for Manchester United. 19 years old, Paris born and bred (from Les Ulis like Thierry Henry) and super talented defender!🇫🇷
— Julien Laurens (@LaurensJulien) December 23, 2023
United fans took to social media after the match to praise Kambwala, who was the only player seen to show support for Kobbie Mainoo after the fellow youngster committed a mistake which ultimately led to West Ham’s second goal.
I think Willy Kambwala had a decent debut yesterday.
What really stood out for me was how composed and comfortable he is on the ball. His great physique made him good in box defending and aerial clearances as well.
He has a potential to be a great CB with time. pic.twitter.com/6WI2F4kSs9
— Kompliketa. (@Iamsospete1) December 24, 2023
Don’t sleep on that opening performance from Willy Kambwala today.
He’s showing signs of a CB built for the modern era, and importantly, he seems a grounded lad with the right head on his shoulders.
Invested. 📈 pic.twitter.com/gJv8sEDanj
— Dev Bajwa (@ammandev) December 23, 2023
Kambwala had a very respectable debut today I feel.
— $KM (@yoofnited) December 23, 2023
Willy Kambwala was voted as #mufc's best starting player (4.87/10) against West Ham by @BBCSport viewers, with Antony voted as the worst (3.23/10). pic.twitter.com/dJjN6ocCAk
— UtdDistrict (@UtdDistrict) December 24, 2023
The 19-year-old put in a strong performance on his debut and he looked strong and confident in possession of the ball. We must remember that Kambwala, like Mainoo, is a teenager being thrown into a shambolic United team. I hope by learning from all of this they don’t start to settle for mediocrity like many of the teammates that surround them.
In terms of Kambwala numbers against Hammers, the young centre-back touched the ball 92 times and finished the game with an 80% pass accuracy. He made 3 clearances, recovered the ball as many times and made one block.
Although Jonny Evans had a couple of questionable moments, including a dodgy back-pass to Andre Onana in the second-half, the Northern Ireland international’s experience would have been a benefit to Kambwala.
I wouldn’t be surprised if we see him in the team again soon – maybe against Aston Villa on Boxing Day if none of the other defenders return from injury.
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