West Ham won’t buy a striker, Ings & Mubama are cover enoughĀ
West Ham manager David Moyes does not see the need to buy a striker in January. The Hammers gaffer made this statement whilst speaking to the press ahead of the League Cup game against Liverpool at Anfield on Wednesday night.
When asked about potential January reinforcements for West Ham, Moyes stated, “I donāt think we do. Weāve got Bowen, weāve got Michail Antonio, weāve got Danny Ings, weāve got young Divin Mubama.”
āItās not numbers we need. If itās something else we need, then finding it, having it at the right cost, and getting it becomes a hard thing. Thereās a huge amount of teams looking for a centre-forward right now, and I donāt think thereās many sitting there waiting to be plucked.ā
Possibly Moyes is being coy, but the lack of a decent follow-up question allowed him to sidestep the issue to some degree. However, with Mohammed Kudus departing for the African Cup of Nations, Bowen will be unable to play as a striker.
This will leave the currently injured Michail Antonio to lead the line during a period of fixture congestion. The reality is that Moyes will have to start either Mubama or Ings, which is far from ideal.
It’s imperative that West Ham recruit from a position of strength. Allowing a five-week period where the team is effectively without a striker who can regularly score could be the difference between European qualification and mediocrity.