Diouf Credit Row Erupts at West Ham

Before I go into any detail about today’s revelations regarding the signing of Maick Diouf, let me start by saying I’ve heard only good things about Max Hahn.

The data analyst scout was brought in under the tenure of Tim Steidten yet remained at the club after the German director of football departed. Hahn made an immediate impact at West Ham and quickly gained the trust of the board, with every transfer being double-checked by him.

As I reported at the time, Dutch midfielder Ezechiel Banzuzi was identified by Hahn, as were Lucas Stassin and John Victor.

However, most would agree that when Malick Diouf was signed, it was widely accepted that the 20-year-old Senegalese international was a Graham Potter and Kyle Macaulay signing. It was reported at the time that both Potter and Macaulay became convinced of Diouf’s pedigree when watching Habib Diarra play for the same national team against England.

Shifting the Narrative

Now, I understand that Potter is no longer flavour of the month, and let’s be fair — he will go down as the worst permanent West Ham manager of all time. However, there was never any pushback at the time that he and his right-hand man Macaulay were pushing hard for the transfers of both Diouf and Mateus Fernandes. Granted, Fernandes was a second choice after missing out on Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey, but nonetheless, Potter wanted him.

At no point was this understanding of events challenged by club or transfer sources as the then recruitment team sought to bring in younger, promising players.

Yet now, with Potter gone from the London Stadium, the one piece of credit he might have from a poorly executed job appears to be taken away. We’re now hearing that the impressive Diouf and Fernandes transfers are being credited to Max Hahn. How convenient.

For the record, I don’t for a moment believe ExWHUEmployee is fabricating the story. In fact, I’m quite certain he’s been told the information, and most likely not directly by the club either.

But I find this sudden switch in narrative a little too convenient. It takes credit for good signings away from the recruitment team in place at the time. Are we really supposed to believe that all the decent players signed were down to a single scout reporting directly to David Sullivan and Karren Brady?

Of course, poor old Mads Hermansen has been attributed to Potter and Macaulay’s recruitment — which is rather handy considering he’s looked like a colander so far. No doubt if the Dane suddenly becomes a clean sheet machine, even that story may take on a new spin.

The truth is, it’s enough that Potter has gone. It’s enough that some good players arrived during his time and that we now appear to have a competent coach. But it would be nice if the club allowed him at least a shred of credibility for the things he did get right.