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Pellegrini comments on Ben Johnson’s West Ham debut

West Ham United manager Manuel Pellegrini has lavished praise on young defender Ben Johnson after his display against Manchester City.

The youngster was handed his debut against the Premier League giants and he managed to cope with their intensity and pressure quite well.

Speaking to Football London, Pellegrini admitted that he took a big risk in starting Johnson against a team of Manchester City’s quality but it has paid off.

He said: “Of course it was a big risk. But we didn’t have any other option. Masuaku is injured, Cresswell broke his toe in the last game, Zabaleta is just coming back from a back injury that he was not able to play the full game.