Happy New Year to all my fellow Hammers, readers, authors and posters here on WHTID. I hope 2018 will bring you health, good fortune and happiness for yourself and your families.
As for West Ham thankfully the footballing calendar doesn’t leave much time to ponder and reflect too much on points lost and opportunities missed, the West Brom game is already upon us and then there is another little thing to deal with, what was it again ? Ooh, I’m feeling a bit taters, where’s the bloody draft coming from ? Oh yes, of course, the transfer window is open once more.
While we are still perched dangerously close to the edge of the Premier League cliff (after recent results we are actually in one of the relegation spots for the time being), it’d be foolish to assume there won’t be any transactions for West Ham in the coming weeks. Our squad needs shaking up a bit. Players who haven’t quite delivered or are unhappy with their lot at the club are likely to be shipped out.
Of course most of what’s following is mild (or wild ?) speculation on my part, but that’s all part of the fun of the transfer window, innit ? And God knows, a bit of fun is most welcome at this point, especially when it comes to our cosy little family club/global brand.
So, who will leave ? In my book, quite a few. If we can or will adequately replace them is anyone’s guess, but I would expect Hart to leave after seeing his loan terminated early.
The whole point of him coming to us in the first place was establishing himself as the clear cut Number One goalkeeper with us, booking his ticket for the World Cup in Russia in the process.
As it is though he has rarely impressed on the pitch this season. Granted, it’s not exactly a picnic having to play between the sticks for West Ham and behind our current defenders these days, but still a goalkeeper who aims to be England’s goalkeeper of choice for the World Cup should still be able to win games for his team on the pitch, pulling off unbelievable saves, instilling confidence in his defenders, being a solid rock at the back. Unfortunately Hart hasn’t been able to do that and for that reason has lost his position as regular starter and rightly so.
I am sure that both West Ham and Joe Hart thought this loan spell would work out a lot differently, but as things stand the deal is no longer working for the player or the club.
I see a parting of ways as the natural thing to do here. I would also expect Diafra Sakho to leave as obviously his heart is no longer in it and he almost seems destined to go anywhere as long as it’s away from West Ham and he finally gets starts (understandably so), be that somewhere else in England or in France.
I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Carroll leave should we receive a decent offer for him as quite frankly, like so many other strikers at the club in recent years, he just hasn’t delivered the goods. Coupled with his injury record he just doesn’t score enough (or create scoring opportunities for others), so he could be out the door as well.
Maybe, just maybe accompanied by Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez.
The Mexican has scored goals like clockwork everywhere he has plied his trade so far, the common denominator being him scoring all his goals from inside the box. So the secret to get the most out of him is to create plenty of movement (and havoc) near and inside the opposition’s penalty box. For some reason West Ham don’t seem to be able or willing to do that, hence Hernandez is not scoring as often as he’d like to. Also I think he wants and needs more minutes on the pitch and most clubs would be happy to give him just that, knowing what he can do if being played in the right system.
Ayew might be sold as well, but it’d be an exercise in cutting our losses as it sounds impossible that we will recoup anywhere near the fee we paid for him not too long ago.
I am aware that this would require wholesale changes for us upfront and I am also aware that January is a very difficult time to make value for money signings.
In fact, it is difficult to make any signings full stop.
Plus it doesn’t really help if you are asking potential signings to join a relegation battle rather than playing for Europa League qualification.
There is also a chance we may lose some defenders, Collins and Ogbonna being the most likely candidates. This would tie in with Reece Oxford being recalled from Borussia Mönchengladbach, apparently against the expressed wishes of the player himself.
I have to say I was caught by surprise hearing that Oxford’s loan has been cut short. He was just starting to establish himself over there, finally getting regular starts.
It’s easy to understand why he would want to stay in the Rhineland for now as there are obviously no guarantees he will get more gametime at West Ham.
All we know so far is that Moyes will take a look at him and then decide. Which also applies to Reece Burke and Josh Cullen as both will be recalled from their loans at Bolton to be assessed by the gaffer.
According to rumours both are likely to not make the grade and get sold in this window to generate some funds to add to our transfer kitty. It is always sad when you see a youngster NOT make it and their spells at West Ham coming to an end. But on the other hand it is just part of the circle of life in football. We all know that the vast majority of prospects don’t quite make it in the end, but then again there is still a chance for Burke and Cullen as maybe, just maybe Moyes sees potential and will give them a shot for the remainder of the season. In any case it is cheaper (but also a lot riskier) to play prospects rather than signing new players who already have experience at the top level.
Having watched several transfer windows under our current board already I have come to basically expect nothing from them when it comes to getting deals over the line, especially for players of a certain quality with a pricetag to match. I just don’t think they still know how to cope in today’s crazy market. Of course from a fan’s perspective the current transfer fees are mindboggling, even for average Premier League players. But the prices are what they are and if you are not prepared to pay the price you won’t get the player as another club will simply step up and pay if they are really interested in getting that particular player.
There aren’t many shrewd deals available anymore out there and the only thing that might push our board towards spending a fair amount of cash is the fear of actually getting relegated. That indeed would be horrible for our club on so many levels. It also would instantly devalue the board’s investment significantly and if anything, they won’t allow that to happen if they can avoid that.
I will welcome any new signing at the club with wide open arms, a lot of hope and yes, also a modicum of optimism. It’s been said before, all it takes is two wins on the bounce and we’d be very much back in business. It’s very tight in the table and it’s easy to make up or drop several places in the table with just a few results.
I am absolutely certain that we will stay up but I am equally certain that it’s going to be a struggle for the rest of the season. We will always hover in and around the relegation places, that’s just the way the season seems to be shaping up.
West Brom next then. Again, a very winnable game, but as we know that alone should give us plenty of reasons to approach this fixture with caution. There are no easy games for us this season. Have we ever dominated the opposition in a game in the past 18 months, winning at a canter or having the opposition under the kosh for the entire game ?
I don’t think so. I expect a tense affair, a scrappy game, but hopefully one we can win regardless, even if it may not be beautiful.
I’m looking forward to the West Brom game, the rollercoaster of emotions that is the January transfer window and of course to writing some more articles for you good people in 2018. I hope they will still be about Premier League football once August 2018 comes around…COYI!!!