The finish of the Premier League season continues to be up in the air with a cancellation becoming increasingly likely. For West Ham, this would mean the avoidance of a further relegation battle and the ability to sign their midfield ace.
Next to avoiding the drop, the biggest positive for West Ham would be the ability to sign Tomas Soucek on a permanent deal. The Irons negotiated the Slavia Prague midfield ace on a loan deal in January to help shore up the midfield, with his permanent signing hinging upon the Hammers staying up.
There is immense complexity to the idea of extending the season into the summer with the pushing of Euro 2020, Copa America, and the Summer Olympics already confirmed. Not to mention the need to have other European leagues on board for starting up play again where the coronavirus has had a bigger impact ie. Italy.
It makes the most sense to then cancel the season and look for resolutions to relegation and promotion issues, instead of worrying about a potential restart.
For the Hammers, this would mean they now are eligible to permanently ink Soucek and settle their midfield depth chart from the top down. Just named the Czech Republic’s footballer of the year for 2019.
🏆 | Tomáš Souček became Czech Footballer of the Year 2019! It's the first award for our midfielder who joined @WestHam on loan on the beginning of 2020!#slaviaprague #soucek pic.twitter.com/RtqRkZ1WEV
— SK Slavia Prague EN (@slavia_eng) March 22, 2020
Since joining West Ham, his stamina, physicality, and ability to get up and down the pitch, impacting the game on both ends has been a revelation in the midfield. Playing as a defensive mid, box-to-box, or versatile CM, Soucek hasn’t looked out of place or as is he’s missed a step after his move from Prague.
He hasn’t contributed to any goals thus far but is a setpiece target and danger in the box. His positional awareness and anticipation make him a defensive gem in the midfield, and his engine has seen him eclipse any Hammer in six years, running eight miles against Manchester City.
He’s endeared supporters to him with his social media presence as well. During the shutdown, he’s been posting videos of life under restriction with park runs and captions on rainy days stating “London weather” all with a smile on his face.
Soucek is also just 25-years-old, and proving to be a player the Hammers can build upon for the future. Ideally, he’ll be Declan Rice‘s midfield partner for the foreseeable future, but should Rice request a move out of East London, the gap won’t be quite as big in the holding midfield with Soucek still remaining.
The Hammers have flopped on looking abroad for goalscoring and offensive production in recent years. Soucek is proving, however, that great passing, physicality, and vision are transferable stats that can bridge between other leagues and the Premier League. West Ham need to lock up this midfield ace ASAP once the league has ended.