32 Comments

Top eight beckons but get a move on Irons

joe-hart-manchester-city-hull-premier-league_3001982West Ham fans may be disappointed that a £20 million bid for Stoke City forward Marko Arnautovic has failed (FOR NOW), but there can be no doubt about the club’s ambitions this summer.

England goalkeeper Joe Hart seems close to signing and plenty of top level names appear to have been in the mix over the last two or three weeks with Olivier Giroud, among the others. The board intends to spend big in the transfer market this summer.

Increased financial firepower generated by the new stadium means we can afford to target a higher calibre of player now, but right now other clubs are putting us to shame in the market place.

Despite that, the club’s stature is rising with the words  Premier League stalwart coming to mind. It remains far too early to believe we can realistically contend with Chelsea, Tottenham, Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Man Utd next season.

Aspirations have to be managed and the next stage is to become established as a top eight outfit. Our rivals remain the  tier below the Big Six – Everton, Leicester City, Stoke, Southampton, West Brom and maybe even Bournemouth given the way they are spending.

Eddie Howe’s club has already spent north of £20 million on Nathan Ake this summer, and they have strengthened the spine of their team with a top goalkeeper in Asmir Begovic and a Jermain Defoe.

zabEverton have of course led led the way this summer, having spent more than any other Premiership club so far, including oil rich Man City. Granted, they lost star striker Romelu Lukaku in a £75 million deal to Man Utd, but they have spent £30 million apiece on Jordan Pickford and Michael Keane and £23.6 million on Ajax captain Davy Klaassen, and brought England’s record goal scorer Wayne Rooney back to Goodison Park.

They also show no signs of stopping spending. Leicester are tying up a big move for Kelechi Iheanacho and have already spent £30 million signing Harry Maguire and Vicente Iborra.

The bleak fact remainsthat thus farn only signed Pablo Zabaleta has arrived on on a free transfer. The Argentinean has been a wonderful servant to Man City over the years, but looked a bit over the hill at times last season.

It is obvious West Ham need to bolster their starting 11 with several new players. although remember that Southampton and Stoke have not started spending yet.

The bare minimum next season should be finishing in the top half. You can actually get very attractive odds on that outcome right now. Ladbrokes typically has some of the best odds available, as this review explains, and it is offering 11/8 on West Ham finishing in the top half. They could afford to finish behind the big six and a further three teams and still make it, so that looks a very good bet.

The stars will start trickling in soon. Arnautovic wants to leave Stoke due to their lack of ambition, and a third bid could tempt Mark Hughes to cash in on the Austrian. A move for Hart sounds very realistic as he is not in high demand, but he is a top goalkeeper and a huge improvement on what’s available to us.

Defensive reinforcements, a strong midfield presence and a top striker to ease the burden on the frequently injured Andy Carroll will remain a priority, and the club seems determined to back Slaven Bilic in the summer transfer window, so there is every chance of us returning to the top eight next campaign, and then we can focus on breaking into the top six after that.

 

About Hugh5outhon1895

Hugh Southon is a lifelong Iron and the founding editor of ClaretandHugh. He is a national newspaper journalist of many years experience and was Bobby Moore's 'ghost' writer during the great man's lifetime. He describes ClaretandHugh as "the Hammers daily newspaper!" Follow on Twitter @hughsouthon

32 comments on “Top eight beckons but get a move on Irons

  1. On the midfield front I think we should consider Nampalys Mendy from Leicester, he had a really poor season last season and is not likely to get many games this season but he could prove an excellent partner to Obiang in the centre of our midfield, they have also allegedly put Slimani up for sale at a discount price, you don’t need to be a genius to realise they have too many players and many on big salaries following their league win so something has to give to bring the budget under control at the King Power. Slimani is slightly younger than Giroud but has more pace and will probably score as many goals each season he is an ideal player for the way we play.

  2. Who really thinks that Hart will guarantee us a top eight finish !!??!! .
    Like Peter Chek will win Arsenal the league !!. ( spelt that wrong but , who cares )
    Winning 3 2 is better than losing 3 2 . A waste of a signing in my opinion .

  3. Can Hart play centre forward because I thought we were only interested in forwards. Truth is its the same old story of last years marquee signing, it wont happen. Our chairmen appear to have set a 20m ceiling on transfers so looks like all the other clubs will pick up the better players leaving us with yet more sub standard loan deals. Somehow feel that its just a way to push ST renewals, yet again the fans have been had, the board threat us like mugs and muppets with all the hype about getting big players, playing in Europe, moving the club to the next level and what a wonderful stadium we dont own.

    Smoke and mirrors while they bleed the club dry until a big buyer can found, they have history just look at the way they run Birmingham.

    Little in and walk away with pockets stuffed full of cash.

    • Yes I agree with your sentiments No Nonsense.I don’t have any faith in our owners and it is looking more like a replay of Birmingham saga.

    • The mess at Birmingham was created after they left.

  4. Amonst an array of miserable fans who rise to the fore on our west ham sites you are very much up there as a leading candidate for the crown of the most depressing Kevin!!

  5. No i should take that back no nonesense takes the crown.

  6. I wonder if any possible new signings ever read what could be their new destinations fan sites.If so it would explain why we cant attract players.
    All they must read is a foray in to Valhalla with the garbage written based on speculation,guesswork and over-imaginative bull.
    These places really do attract the worst of the worst.
    They are like places for frontal lobotomy cases that went wrong.

    • Pretty sure Giroud, Hart and Little Pea all come here om a regular basis before they decide to take the +£100k a week. mmmwwwaaahhhaaahhaa!

  7. I’m not miserable lol

  8. COYI

  9. Increased financial firepower generated by the new stadium means we can afford to target a higher calibre of player now,

    Not sure about the above statement
    Im sure you should have said
    Increased financial firepower generated by the new TV deal means that all prem clubs can afford to target a higher calibre of player now,

  10. Moan moan moan!!! Joe Hart would be a tremendous signing! He’s had a couple of dodgy games for England and you’re all writing him off! A big step up compared to Adrian and even bigger to Randolph!

    Hart

    Zabaleta
    Reid
    Ogbonna
    Creswell

    Kouyate
    Obiang

    Lanzini
    Antonio
    Ayew?

    Giroud/Hernandez

    Yes please!

      • Group captain Bader nige 🙂 but after the hernia opp he’s predicted to plug the holes more efficiently 🙂 by all accounts he wil be a new man , like Steve Austin 🙂 🙂
        Not quite bionic but nothing a good squirt of plus gas couldn’t put right, its when it rains the problems could start 🙂 🙂

  11. Can never be sure until you see them in our kit. We are linked with everyone and a lot is true bc cast a wide Net but doesn’t meam they will sign.
    When they put on the shirt they are a player and not on Twitter.
    AMD pls no to Hart £100k to fund Little Pea (Chicarito)

  12. Personally don’t think hart, Giroud or Chicarito will join as it will bust open the wage structure particularly if others pay is linked to top earners.
    Hope I am wrong

  13. Ffs whatever happens this summer aint going to change with us moaning & all our general baboonery.
    If they spend naff all by the end of August then yeah rip the **** out of them.If they stockpile a wedge & then **** off into the sunset with it have a go at them then.
    For now its all guess work & minds doing overtime looking for the worst.
    Ffs have a beer & relax until you actually have a factual reason to lose the plot 😀

    • Look at the comments, why let facts get in the way of a good whinge?

    • Exactly rads , but you gotta laugh at the mentality of the baying mob 🙂 it reminds me of the stoning in life of Brian , the bearded ladies waiting for any excuse or word to hurl a rock 🙂 I’ll refer to them as beards in future 🙂

  14. Hugh I have read this site since the start a you are always positive and straight up but this post strikes me as being squeaky bum. Time and time again 2 -3 players is mentioned with strikers as the target now your saying players from across the park. If you have any pull at the club use it to pull there wallets from under the rubble of last year’s fiasco, show them the 10 point plan and send them dembeles way.
    Keepers midfield and defense are requiring reinforcements but sort the striker situation first.one quality striker must be the only focus to start with onless you are throwing cash like Everton (backed by a sugar daddy)

  15. Poor sod 😀 Then again being married ain’t that depressing compared to all this woe is me talk and daily bouts of nappy wetting 😆😆

    • Lol well im totally indifferent towards Goldfinger & The Shrimp,dont like them,dont hate them.But i aint going to start shouting about them every day.Especially when there is nothing factual to base the latest bout of rants on yet.When the window shuts fair enough,if or when they sell up fair enough but most of its based on **** floating round in peoples heads😀

    • Rads even if we won every game, won the CL and spent a billion quid on transfers the same old faces would moan about bleeding something. They’d probably still bleat on and say it was better when the slug was in charge and how the Poppodom would have scored more 😆😆

  16. More nappy wetters here than anywhere, you old pervs love it! 💦

  17. Hammerheadz another troll sat on his mums lap while she pushes the keys for him on his beginners laptop.

    • Travis it’s probably just old Cometh the Fishy moment and his new username 😆😆

    • I did warn you lot not too mention the mensa mens site because they would mobilise their secret squirrel accounts on here 😁
      I dont give a **** what they say,dont know them,never will so why should i give a shyte.Let them crack on if it gives them a thrill 😂

  18. I had enough of the trolls or the ones who want to make offensive remarks too me.I was more than content on here until recently.Now this old bugger would rather come on when its late & quiet or not at all lol
    Some idiots need too realise theres more too life than a bloody football club,even ours.

  19. Haven’t Man City got an old Striker we could take – what’s ‘The Goat’ up to?

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