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Another day another defender linked to West Ham

By Henry Tomlinson

Saint-Etienne's French defender Wesley Fofana jumps for the ball during the French Cup final football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Saint-Etienne (ASSE) on July 24, 2020, at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, outside Paris. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP) (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP via Getty Images)
Saint-Etienne's French defender Wesley Fofana jumps for the ball during the French Cup final football match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Saint-Etienne (ASSE) on July 24, 2020, at the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, outside Paris. (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT / AFP) (Photo by GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP via Getty Images) /
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West Ham are entirely in transfer gossip mode from links James Tarkowski to Joe Rodon; the Hammers are also interested in St Etienne defender Wesley Fofana.

A widely reported move for Burnley defender James Tarkowski seems to be off as the demanded fee appears to be too high for the Hammers. Whereas, links to Swansea’s Joe Rodon are still active, but the Welsh club are not keen on selling their best defender. These dead ends have forced West Ham to look to Europe for a new defender.

The defender that has reportedly caught the interest of the Hammers is St Etienne defender Wesley Fofana. The 19-year-old impressed last season in the French side’s defence, Fofana was deployed next to new Arsenal defender William Saliba.

Sky Sports have reported that the Hammers have made a huge £33 million bid for the defender. The deal includes an immediate payment of £23 million and the remaining £10 million to be made upon performance-based add-ons.

Despite Fofana’s tender age, he is performing at a far better level than some of West Ham’s current defensive options. Statistically, he was better than record defensive signing Issa Diop in pretty much every category.

The other two defenders at the club, Angelo Ogbonna and Fabian Balbuena, both have questions over their long-term futures at the club. Ogbonna is the wrong side of thirty and is not getting any younger. Balbuena does not seem to have faith from Moyes behind him and could be sold soon.

Fofana, if signed, could spend a long-time at the club and continue with his development as he would be guaranteed game-time. The other benefit of signing the Frenchman is that he fits into the ‘Red Bull Project’ that David Moyes was so keen to build when he returned.

Next. David Moyes needs to become proactive at West Ham. dark

Although after David Sullivan’s interview on TalkSport yesterday, any links to new players need to be taken with a pinch of salt. The Co-Chairman very much played down the clubs chances of signing new players before the window shut. Is Sullivan telling the truth, or is it a clever negotiating tactic?

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