3 Signings David Moyes Could Complete If Is He Is Appointed As West Ham Manager
Slaven Bilic has been sacked as West Ham boss following a dismal 4-1 defeat against Liverpool at the London stadium on Saturday. The 49-year-old met joint-chairman David Sullivan for crunch talks and faced the axe.
The Hammers hierarchy wanted Bilic, who replaced Sam Allardyce in 2015, to stay until the end of the season and see out his three-year contract. The Croatian’s position was discussed in October due to a run of poor results but the club’s owners opted to give him more time to improve results.
Despite a victory over Tottenham in the EFL Cup a few days later, the Hammers drew their next game against Palace and were then annihilated by Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool. Bilic’s side have won just two Premier League matches this season and are one point above the Premier League relegation zone.
With Slaven Bilic gone, according to BBC, it seems West Ham have already held talks with ex-Everton and Manchester United manager David Moyes, after the 54-year-old made no secret of his ‘interest’ regarding the job to Bein Sports (h/t BBC).
The 54-year-old Scotsman’s most recent managerial job was at Sunderland but he resigned after they were relegated to the Championship in May. Moyes, who has reportedly been told that he can bring in players of his wish in January, will also be able to appoint his own backroom staff.
However, let us look at three players Moyes should sign in January if he becomes the West Ham manager.
William Carvalho
A deal for William Carvalho was aborted on deadline day, with Sporting claiming that the Hammers never made an official bid for the midfielder. Despite relations becoming sour between West Ham and Sporting over Carvalho saga, reports suggest the Hammers could finally get their man in January.
Moyes will be desperate to add a defensive-midfielder in the West Ham ranks and Carvalho fits the bill perfectly. West Ham have shipped in a lot of goals this season and are in dire need of a midfielder, who can protect the defence and contribute significantly to the attack.
Known simply as William in Portugal, the midfielder’s style of play is often compared to that of Patrick Vieira’s. Despite a strong physical presence backed by his height of 6′ 1″, he’s not a hard tackler nor does he commit many fouls. Reading of the game, perfect positioning and composure are the qualities that the Sporting midfielder exhibits.
In short, William is a midfield general who Moyes would need in order to bolster the squad in January.
Ross Barkley
Ousted by Ronald Koeman at Everton, Ross Barkley, who is out injured at the moment, is out of contract at Everton at the end of the season. West Ham are certainly monitoring the situation, as the England international would be a great addition to their midfield.
The decision to sell Dimitri Payet in January—one of the Premier League’s most creative players—has been catastrophic. To sell Payet on the cheap was a costly call and West Ham have not recovered from it yet. Manuel Lanzini has elusive quality in his game, although he’s no Payet.
So signing Barkley, a very good attacking midfielder, in January would make sense for Moyes.
Lukasz Teodorczyk
After 11 games, it is clear that the Hammers are lacking a prolific striker, despite the presence of the likes of Javier Hernandez, Andy Carroll and Diafro Sakho in their ranks.
West Ham needs a prolific goal scorer and Moyes can target Anderlecht’s Lukasz Teodorczyk in January. Teodorczyk enjoyed a brilliant campaign last season and ended up being the top scorer in the Belgian top-flight after netting 22 league goals. He is a readymade targetman, capable of scoring as well as creating goals.
Reportedly valued at only £10m and at just 26 years of age, the Polish forward would also be a long-term investment.