West Ham United insider ExWHUemployee has been discussing the possibility of Laurent Koscielny joining the club as a free agent.
The January transfer window has come and gone, and whilst West Ham ended the month the same way that they started it in terms of incomings and outgoings, technically they could still do some business in the form of signing free agents.
One area that might need to be addressed is central defence, as the future of French defender Kurt Zouma is somewhat up in the air right now.
Speaking on the latest edition of The West Ham Way podcast before the news came out regarding him and his cat, following a brief injury scare against Kidderminster Harriers, Ex claimed that Koscielny may have been an option if Zouma was indeed out for a long time – but that he didn’t expect the club to pursue him.
He said: “I think Koscielny, the old Arsenal centre-back, is also available. So that may have been an option if Zouma was out [injured], but at this point, I don’t think we’re going to sign anyone on a free transfer. Obviously, we can’t sign anyone else that can play this season.”
TIF Thoughts on ExWHUemployee’s comments about Laurent Koscielny and West Ham United…
Will West Ham's lack of transfers cost them top six?
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Of course, whether or not the latest news regarding Zouma changes anything, we will have to wait and see. But if Zouma is forced out of the team for a long time or dropped completely, signing 36-year-old Koscielny should certainly be an avenue that the Hammers look to explore.
Centre-back is an area where they are somewhat thin, and it could get thinner depending on what they do with Zouma, but given the choice between free agents or bringing up an inexperienced player from the academy, then it’s a no-brainer that they should choose the former.
To secure a short-term deal until the end of the season for someone like Koscielny, who has plenty of experience both in the Premier League and in Europe following his days with Arsenal, would give them an experienced head that they can use to guide themselves through the rest of the season both domestically and abroad.
If they weren’t fighting for anything this season, then a younger player that they want to develop might be the way to go, but with a place in Europe at stake, the last thing they should be looking to do is develop the younger players and instead focus on the here and now.
In other news: ‘Looks like he will remain at West Ham’ – Ex drops player update after ‘no contact’