Why Josh King is not the answer to West Ham’s problems?

As the January window approaches, there is once again the prospect of West Ham’s interest in Bournemouth striker Josh King doing the rounds.

The 28-year-old certainly has the athletic qualities to fit Moyes’ system, but his lack of a cutting edge means West Ham should look elsewhere. Born and raised in Oslo, Josh King attracted interest from the top clubs in England, eventually signing for Manchester United in 2008.

A lack of first-team action saw the Norwegian international head out on loan, but spells at  Preston North End, Borussia Mönchengladbach and Hull City did little for the player’s role at Old Trafford.

Although shining for United’s reserves – King completed a permanent switch to Blackburn Rovers in 2015, after just one first-team appearance as an 85th-minute substitute in a dead-rubber European tie.

After 50 caps for Blackburn, King left for Bournemouth – citing Premier League football and Eddie Howe as the reasons for his move south.

But for all his promise King never truly kicked on in the top flight, returning ten goals on just two occasions. A memorable 2016-17 season of 16 goals in 36 matches is an enigma amongst King’s other average returns.

Perhaps stuck behind Calum Wilson – and even Jermaine Defoe at one point – King was most often deployed on the left of the front three, and rarely found himself with the responsibility of the central striker position.

This is where Josh King’s value falls away. He is a quality player, no doubt – but West Ham have a plethora of wingers/second strikers. Jarrod Bowen, Said Benrahma, Pablo Fornals, Manuel Lanzini and Andrey Yarmolenko all of the similar style and arguably better quality than King. There are also youngsters such as Nathan Holland who should be given a chance and let’s not forget Felipe Anderson is still on the Hammer’s books. A move for King would mean another player fighting for one position.

Yet, the Hammer’s are likely to try to shift the likes of Yarmolenko, Lanzini and Anderson over the coming windows – in a bid to lower the wage budget by cutting their biggest earners. In this case, King could be of use as a Squad Player, but, at 28, he’s unlikely to accept this role.

Sure, they’ll be talk of West Ham signing the talented Norwegian, but the board should be cautious. The striker will be available for around £15-20 million, hardly a bargain for a player sitting on the bench in the Championship.

Consequentially, King doesn’t fit the bill for the marksman the Hammers need to sign in January; instead, he’d fall simply into a category of players the Hammer’s already have in abundance.