Frankly, we are of the opinion that West Ham United’s approach to the transfer market has exponentially improved of late. Indeed, the recent smart buys of the likes of Felipe Anderson and Issa Diop have bettered the squad and, more recently, the capture of the highly-rated Pablo Fornals had Guillem Balague purring on the club’s official website.
Diop, signed for a club record £22 million, not only proved to be worth every penny by averaging the best defensive stats in the side (comparisons made by Squawka), but could now be worth so much more. Indeed, TF1 (via the Sun) reported recently that Manchester United had a £45m plus an unnamed player bid rejected by the Hammers.
The Frenchman’s clear impression on a giant such as the Red Devils, as well as Balague’s reaction to the Fornals coup, certainly indicates an improvement in transfer strategy. After all, Jamie Carragher criticised the Irons’ policy in that area when writing in the Daily Mail back in 2016, so it’s not hard to argue that there were clear issues.
Now, those in East London are seemingly building on this further as they reportedly attempt to lure another top-level talent to the club. According to the Independent, they’re open to a potential Diop departure IF Anthony Martial is included as part of the deal. Ambitious stuff.
Nobody is denying Diop’s work and averaging 2.1 tackles, 4.7 clearances, 1.9 interceptions and 2.3 aerial duels won (stats WhoScored) per 90 mins proves how crucial he was to marshalling the troops. However, Martial is a special talent talked up by the likes of Bryan Robson – who said the former Monaco man could go onto become a ‘great’ at Old Trafford – as well the recipient of the prestigious Golden Boy Award in 2015.
When you look at the fact that he’s reached double figures in three seasons (via WhoScored) for Manchester United, it’s not hard to argue he’d improve the Hammers’ attack, a collective unit that saw only two players hit double digits for goals.
Frankly, in terms of status, he’d arguably be the biggest name to arrive since Carlos Tevez.
The report does claim that decision-makers at the Theatre of Dreams are keen on retaining the French international’s talent and potential, though the fact that West Ham have even demanded what would be a coup shows how the shift in transfer policy has them thinking progressively and ambitiously.
Hammers fans, would you be happy to see Diop be potentially exchanged for Martial this summer? Join the discussion by commenting below…
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