Why Mateo Musacchio to West Ham would be a blockbuster move

Back in October 2018, the Football London had claimed West Ham were tracking AC Milan’s Mateo Musacchio ahead of a potential January swoop. In the end, the Hammers didn’t lodge a bid in January 2019 to sign defender from AC Milan.

Mateo Musacchio, 29, started his career at River Plate before moving to Villarreal in 2009. He spent eight long years at Villarreal before leaving for Milan in the summer of 2017.

The 29-year-old, who joined the Italians for around €18m, wasn’t a regular at Milan in his debut season, clocking just 15 league appearances. However, last year saw him play regularly under the management of Gennaro Gattuso, who was sacked by the Serie A club at the end of 2018/19.

The Argentinean has played seven times in the Serie A this season, helping the club keep just two clean sheets. Regardless of Milan having endured a poor start to the 2019/20 Serie A campaign, West Ham must rekindle their interest in Musacchio when the transfer window reopens.

West Ham dropped into the bottom half of the table for the first time in two months by virtue of Sheffield United’s win over Arsenal on Monday night. The players have shown a lack of desire and competitive nature in the last few games, with the Hammers without a win in their last four games – three of which were defeats.

Manuel Pellegrini should be worried about his team’s poor form, especially the manner in which the east Londoners lost to a low on confidence Everton side on Saturday. Things must improve if West Ham are to break into the top six this time around and a couple of fresh faces in January would be welcome.

As the Hammers have been defensively poor, Pellegrini should target a new centre-half to shore up his backline. And Mateo Musacchio would fit the billing at the London Stadium as he has the quality and experience to make an immediate impact.

Musacchio is composed with the ball at his feet and can initiate attacks from the back. He likes to be physically dominant against centre-forwards and read the game well from the defensive point of view. The six-cap Argentina international certainly has the physical attributes to play in the Premier League.

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His calmness, composure and strong positional awareness complement his robust tackling as a defender and the 29-year-old would be an instant upgrade on Angelo Ogbonna. All in all, an experienced defender like Musacchio would be ideal in mentoring the promising Issa Diop.

Verdict

Musacchio is generally a reliable presence at the back and is currently operating at the prime of his career. Even if he is settled at Milan and playing regularly, the Argentinean could be tempted by the prospect of Premier League football, and hence, West Ham should make a move for him in January.