West Ham Record Defender Being Chased by PL Trio
West Ham manager David Moyes will have to make a decision on the future of Issa Diop this month. The French defender has fallen out of favour this season and finds himself on the fringes of the first-team.
Two seasons ago in 2018, Manuel Pellegrini signed Issa Diop from Toulouse for a fee of around £22 million. The transfer was a record for West Ham, who had never spent that much money on a defender before in their history. To this date, Diop is the most expensive defender the club has signed.
In Diop’s first season in London, he earned rave reviews from the fans and managers across the league. Jose Mourinho described the 24-year-old as a ‘monster’ after his Manchester United side were beaten at the London Stadium.
It had seemed West Ham had acquired a defender with the potential to be a world-beater, however, a dip of form from the whole club last season affected Diop. The Frenchman became error-prone, and question marks started to be raised over his performances.
West Ham defenders Craig Dawson and Fabian Balbuena have moved above Issa Diop in the pecking order.
This season Diop started as first-choice but after a positive COVID test missed a crucial run of games for the Hammers. Fabian Balbuena replaced him and rediscovered his best form, and now Craig Dawson has done the same. The joy these two defenders have had has pushed Diop down to the fifth-choice.
Diop is undoubtedly a talented player but needs to be playing games to get back to his best. Ligue 1 side OGC Nice were linked with a move for Diop but instead signed William Saliba from Arsenal. According to Sky Sports, Diop is a target for three Premier League clubs interested in a loan move for the defender.
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The clubs are still unknown, but Tottenham have shown interest in the past, and West Brom have also been linked with a move. A loan for Diop would be a smart option for the club as he could regain his form. This would mean he could either play again for the Hammers or be sold for a much higher figure in the future.