Having captained Brazilian side Corinthians, West Ham may have been hoping Fabian Balbuena could bring in some vital leadership in central defence when he joined them back in the summer of 2018.

In his debut campaign in English football, Balbuena averaged a pretty impressive 1.7 tackles and 2.3 interceptions per game in the Premier League, earning an average match rating of 6.98. However, this season has been a completely different story, with his numbers taking a significant dip.

As per Whoscored, the Paraguayan is now averaging just 1.2 tackles and 1.9 interceptions per game, whilst his match rating has dipped worryingly to a measly 6.67. And after being given the chance to impress against West Brom in the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon, Balbuena was hooked at half-time, and saw the Baggies knock his side out of the competition.

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After seeing his performance, West Ham fans took to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the 28-year-old.

Some Hammers fans were particularly critical of his passing, with one supporter in particular claiming that Balbuena gave away the ball more times than he had been to see the side.

A couple of supporters even called for Balbuena to be sold.

Getting substituted in a game is never the greatest of feelings, but getting pulled from a match at half-time is particularly damning. Whilst Balbuena was joined by both Pablo Fornals and Carlos Sanchez in seeing their afternoon come to an abrupt end, the centre-back may be wondering whether he will now get a genuine opportunity to shine once again.

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Damaging defeats like the one on Saturday can often see managers take a ruthless position on matters, and Balbuena may be one of the long-term casualties of the Hammers' disappointing FA Cup exit.

Meanwhile, West Ham hold an interest in bringing back this former star.