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West Ham United: Manuel Pellegrini wants Aissa Mandi from Real Betis

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Image for West Ham United: Manuel Pellegrini wants Aissa Mandi from Real Betis

According to a report by Lebuter, Manuel Pellegrini ‘wants’ Algerian centre-back Aissa Mandi, who currently plays for Real Betis in La Liga.

It has been claimed the Algeria international defender could be available for a fee in the region of €30m-€35m (£25.9m-£30.2m), whilst his contract continues to run until 2021.


Indeed, that means if Manuel Pellegrini is really keen on bringing the defender to the London Stadium, he and the Hammers board have a figure to try and reach.

At 28-years-old, the Real Betis centre-back might seem expensive, however, the Algerian is playing regular La Liga level football, having already made 15 starts for Betis this season in the league and in the Copa del Rey.

Mandi isn’t a giant, standing at just six-foot-tall, but this isn’t shown when looking at the centre-back’s aerial duel success ratio, as the Betis man wins on average 2.7/3.9 aerials duels per game. So far this season, the African defender is averaging his second-highest WhoScored rating since the 2016/17 season, which would suggest he is currently playing close to his peak capacity.

TIF Tactics – How will Aissa Mandi fit into West Ham’s squad?

The competition for the Real Betis defender would be between Fabian Balbuena, Issa Diop and Angelo Ogbonna, should he sign for the Irons.

Starting with Balbuena, the Paraguayan makes on average the same amount of tackles and fails, with both men making one tackle and one foul per game. However, when you start to look at the more complex skills of defending, that’s where Mandi starts to excel, with the Algerian making over twice the amount of interceptions and 1.4 more clearances per match.

When compared to Diop, it’s almost a 50/50 split, with the Frenchman having on average more tackles, clearances and dribbles. The other advantage that the West Ham centre-back has is his age, being six years younger and almost as effective as the Algerian already, is a huge plus for the 22-year-old.

Ogbonna also matches, if not beats, Mandi in some areas, but with the Italian being 31 years old now, it could be argued that the Algerian has at least four more seasons at the top level, which Ogbonna, perhaps, can’t match.

If the claret and blues sign the Real Betis defender, then playing a formation like 3-5-2 could be the way to go, with Pellegrini then having the ability to use Diop, Balbuena and Mandi all at the same time, which when looking at their stats makes for a frightening combo.

Around £30m is a hefty price tag, which will bring added pressure to the 28-year-old, however, being exposed to very high-level football in La Liga may have set this talented centre-back up for success.

In his last match against Real Madrid, Mandi managed to win more aerial duels than Raphael Varane and make the same amount of tackles as Sergio Ramos, while also achieving an impressive WhoScored rating for 6.9/10.

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