An “underrated” £90,000-per-week West Ham United player is growing frustrated and wants out of the London Stadium, according to a report this week, with manager Julen Lopetegui at risk of losing him soon.
A quartet of senior squad members in Michail Antonio, Danny Ings, Vladimir Coufal, Aaron Cresswell and Lukasz Fabianski are all out of contract next summer as things stand, so Tim Steidten will have to agree extension deals or let them depart for free.
Antonio and Ings are part of an aging strike force, with Lopetegui pushing the West Ham hierarchy to sign a striker in January amid concerns over a lack of options. Long-serving shot-stopper Fabianski is now 39-years-old and in the twilight phase of his career, and the same can be said for Cresswell, who’s been at the club for over a decade.
Vladimir Coufal will go down as a fan favourite and key player during the 2020/2021 season under David Moyes, but Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s arrival in the summer has negated the need for him to remain at Rush Green for much longer.
Bizarrely, summer signing Niclas Fullkrug has already been tipped to leave West Ham, with an achilles tendon injury blighting his career at the club so far. The 31-year-old’s overall fitness record has been looked into, and it doesn’t make for pretty reading, which has prompted some to question why they struck a deal with Borussia Dortmund in the first place.
He had a few issues during his time in Germany with his fitness,” said former recruitment chief Mick Brown to Football Insider.
That, I’ve heard, played a part in the reason Dortmund were keen to let him go. So if that was an issue, and it was known in Germany, you’ve got to ask serious questions about why it was overlooked by West Ham.
“Paying almost £30million for a 31-year-old is always risky, but spending that money on a player with fitness issues at that age is a huge problem.”
A much bigger blow than losing Fullkrug would be having to part company with forward Mohammed Kudus, who is reportedly attracting interest from the likes of Barcelona and clubs in Saudi Arabia.
According to Anfield Watch, Liverpool are firmly among the growing list of suitors for him. They add that Kudus is growing increasingly frustrated at West Ham, and has told his agents to explore a possible move to Merseyside. The Ghana international, called “underrated” by some, has stood out as one of Lopetegui’s key attacking players so far this season.
If West Ham’s disappointing start to the season continues, there is every reason reports of this nature could begin to hold weight behind them. The 24-year-old, on a reported £90,000-per-week, was rumoured to have an £85 million release clause in the summer – but it has now expired.
