The Knockback Which Shows West Ham Are Barking up The Right Tree

By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)

Whilst West Ham might have received the brush-off, there is little doubt the move to sign Axel Disasi was a hugely ambitious one.

Over the past few weeks, transfer rumour pages have been littered with stories linking the Hammers with lower-league centre-backs who may or may not be an improvement on Max Kilman.

But whether it’s Daniel Křetínský, Nuno Espírito Santo or Nils Koppen, it would appear somebody at the club understands the importance of building a strong central defensive partnership.

The Perfect Partner

With talks ongoing over a new contract for Konstantinos Mavropanos, and hopes remaining that an agreement can be reached, the race is now on to find him a long-term defensive partner.

For that particular job, there was nobody better than Axel Disasi.

Despite West Ham’s relegation, he and Mavropanos formed a formidable partnership during the second half of last season’s Premier League campaign.

Had Disasi returned, I genuinely believe they would have been comfortably the best central defensive pairing in the Championship.

At Least West Ham Are Thinking Big

Of course, West Ham’s recruitment focus should largely be on younger players who can improve and, hopefully, make the step back up to the Premier League if promotion is achieved.

But there is also plenty to be said for signing a tried-and-tested, no-nonsense centre-back of Disasi’s quality.

Whilst it is, of course, disappointing that he rejected the opportunity to return, there is at least a silver lining.

West Ham’s owners are showing they are prepared to target and attempt to retain top-quality footballers.

For me, that’s a far more encouraging sign than settling for mediocrity.