West Ham United may have missed out on the Chelsea-bound Liam Delap but there may still be other market opportunities to be gleaned from the Premier League’s relegated trio.
Despite many a pundit insisting that Liam Delap would be better off at West Ham, the former Manchester City youngster is set to be reunited with one Cole Palmer at Stamford Bridge instead.
Chelsea, in pursuit of a centre-forward capable of nailing down the number nine shirt under Enzo Maresca, are set to complete a deal after triggering the £30 million release clause in his contract.
There are, however, other rough diamonds to be unearthed in the muck and nettles of the Premier League’s bottom three.
West Ham United have been linked with Omari Hutchinson, Ipswich’s wildcard winger. One suspects that, while Ollie Scarles hopes to take over from Aaron Cresswell at left-back, Graham Potter could do worse than get his mitts on Leif Davis.
And with Lukasz Fabianski going and Alphonse Areola coming off the back of a poor individual campaign, one reporter believes that the Hammers should be at the front of the queue for Leicester City goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.
West Ham United urged to sign Leicester City goalkeeper Mads Hermansen
Speaking to Tipsbladet, former Denmark international Peter Kjaer argues that West Ham would be a more suitable destination than Old Trafford for the Manchester United-linked glovesman.
Hermansen is valued at around £35 million, the Leicester-supporting Ben Jacobs told Give Me Sport late last year.
But at the age of just 24, an admittedly hefty price-tag could still represent considerable value for money.
“[Manchester United] are a team that doesn’t work, and haven’t for several years,” Kjaer explains, having watched the Danish duo Rasmus Hojlund and Patrick Dorgu suffer under Ruben Amorim. “It was difficult for Hojlund, and Dorgu also has problems sometimes.
“If you get into something that doesn’t work, you’ll just get hit by it, no matter how good a player you are. I’m not going to give [Mads Hermansen] advice, but I can see that there are better places for his development.”
“Their goalkeeping situation is not very good. Fabianski is finished. Areola is okay, but I don’t think he is skilled enough to be an extraordinary first-choice goalkeeper,” adds Kjaer, who played for Aberdeen and Besiktas among others.
“It’s a nice place, located in London and it’s a club that wants a little more. It’s a nice shelf for him. It’s an upgrade and for a club that wants to be ambitious.
“They have Graham Potter, who wants to play the ball out, and he is significantly better with his feet than Areola.”
Hermansen shone as Leicester beat the Hammers last season
There are always risks attached when signing goalkeepers who have just spent a season excelling behind a disastrous backline. They often stand out, purely because of the amount of work they have to do.
Yet, West Ham found out the hard way just how good Hermansen can be on his day.
The Hammers mustered over 30 shots on goal yet scored only once past the ex-Brondby keeper during Leicester’s 3-1 victory over Julen Lopetegui’s frustrated outfit in December.
And, as Kjaer himself explains, Hermansen’s technical qualities with the ball at his feet should make him a far better fit for Potter-ball than the aforementioned Alphonse Areola.
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