West Ham backed to sign midfielder imminently amid £75m+ development – pundit
Noel Whelan has insisted West Ham will still be in the market for a marquee central-midfield signing after missing out on Amadou Onana and Matheus Nunes.
The former Leeds striker, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, insisted the Irons need more “depth and quality” in their side after “burning out” in the 2021-22 season.
West Ham most recently missed out on Portugal international Nunes, who joined Wolves for a club-record £42.2million on Wednesday (17 August) after rejecting a move to the London Stadium.
Onana also turned down a move to the London side this month, instead opting to join Everton in a reported £33million deal on 9 August.
Football Insider revealed on 10 August that the Belgium international’s preference was to join West Ham – but the Irons refused to guarantee him a starting berth.
David Moyes’ current central midfield options are Flynn Downes, Tomas Soucek, and Declan Rice.
When asked if West Ham could move again for a top centre-midfielder before the 1 September deadline, Whelan told Football Insider‘s Ewan Kingsbury: “Absolutely.
“This is the one thing we saw with West Ham last year. Yes, they did well, but they just burnt out at that last leg. The European games, injuries, the player suspensions, it just got too much.
“David Moyes knows he needs a bit more depth and quality in his side if he’s going to compete on four fronts.
“He’s looking at the right area – central midfield. He’s got the right people in different areas at the right price, out wide and up front.
“They’ve missed out on a couple of their targets now [Onana and Nunes] – but Moyes will be biding his time waiting for the right option, a brilliant player who will fit into the squad with the right financials.”
In other news, pundit claims two West Ham superstars may be facing axe after £50million+ development.