News

Lopetegui Ready to Ditch Moyes Favourite?

|
Image for Lopetegui Ready to Ditch Moyes Favourite?

West Ham United could be set for a surprise departure this summer, with midfielder James Ward-Prowse potentially on the way out after just one season at the London Stadium.

There are rumours that suggest new manager Julen Lopetegui doesn’t see Ward-Prowse fitting his tactical philosophy for West Ham. Consequently, the club is actively trying to generate interest in the 29-year-old for a potential summer transfer.

This news might come as a surprise to some, particularly Southampton fans who have been speculating about the return of former Saints players Danny Ings and Adam Lallana. The possibility of a third ex-Saint, Ward-Prowse, making a swift return to St Mary’s is now a possibility.

West Ham are perhaps hoping for a permanent transfer to recoup most of the £30 million they spent on Ward-Prowse last year. However, a loan deal similar to the one that brought Flynn Downes to the club might not be out of the question.

While Ward-Prowse featured prominently last season, starting 34 Premier League games, his overall impact wasn’t always at the level expected for such a high transfer fee. He managed 7 goals and 7 assists but seemed less influential in the latter part of the season.

Southampton might be hesitant to commit to a permanent transfer for Ward-Prowse, who is approaching 30 years old. Even with his valuation dropping slightly to around £25 million, it’s a significant investment for a player of his age.

Given Ward-Prowse’s age and salary demands, a loan deal seems more realistic. Whether Southampton emerges as the loan destination or another club shows interest remains to be seen.

Share this article

7 comments

  • simon barham says:

    Moyes promised young, hungry and energetic and had 4.5 years to deliver that .. His buys got more short term as things went on .. £30m for JWP who will be 30 by the end of the year .. Not dynamic on the ball going forward .. Rarely scores or assists in open play .. Too small to effectively defend opposition set plays .. Bullied off the ball in midfield .. Seems to get there 2nd too often .. Not good as a defensive midfielder .. Not a No10 .. I’d take £15m from Saints for him and Ings when we paid £45m for the two, was it? .. I’m sure we will be left with a few who we can’t get off the books and I assumed JWP would be one of them, but fair dues to TS and JL if they can get someone in who is younger and better ..

    • elduder says:

      downes is younger and better

      he is perfect for lops system, his press resistance and reliability with the ball is the best in the squad – paqueta would be the best if he didn’t showboat

      downes is also the best #8 we have and the 2nd best number #6 (alvarez) – although in a lop system those 2 could very well flip

      under lop it’s downes > JWP > soucek

      we need to get rid of JWP and soucek who are earning in the 90k bracket, downes is on half that and the better fit for the system

      for sure, it’s going to be A LOT easy to generate good cash from downes but i think wages are the limiting factor here, not transfer budget, keep downes, the better player and sell on JWP and soucek for whatever you can get

      if you can then improve on downes by bringing in aleix garcia or similar it would be perfect business

      • Charlie Farley says:

        Are you having a laugh? Or are you completely deluded? Everybody is an improvement on Downes. That’s why he’s leaving!!!
        Ask yourself this…… Who knows more about football? YOU or LOPETEGUI and STEIDTEN?

  • Simon says:

    I’d rather keep him and get rid of Moyse **** buys, zouma 120k a week, Ings 120k a week Soucek 90k a week, if you include JP 80k a week i more importantly frees up nearly 20m in wages pa, about enough for 8 new players we need

  • Benny the Aussie says:

    This signing does prove what was wrong with Moyes’s transfer strategy.
    Older players with now sell on value etc.
    I doubt we will able to sell for any fee at all and same with Ings.
    It beggars belief how many poor choices were made and money wasted really

  • elduder says:

    was always going to happen, that’s the problem with moyes, he only cared about the short term regardless of how bad it was for the club

    we are so fortunate that maguire rejected our contract offer of 120k/wk for 4 years

    hopefully southampton can take ings and jwp for us, would be a massive start, if we can get 20m for both it would be an excellent deal for us

    the club don’t have a transfer budget ffa issue but a wage budget ffa issue, we need to get rid of the dead wood on high wages that are incompatible with the new system

    soucek on 90k, zouma on 120k are two more massive headaches, who is going to come in for them on those wages?

    • Bennyboy baker says:

      Be sorry to see JWP leave the club he has had a good first season with us he brings a lot to the club not just his set pieces I honestly believe it would be a mistake to let him leave but if Lopetegui doesn’t see him fitting in with his plans then moving on would probably be best for JWP to move on no point in having to sit on the bench for the next season there will be a lot of clubs interested in signing him if he has to go then I wish him all the best

Comments are closed.