Paul Brown of the Daily Star has claimed that West Ham manager is ‘really interested’ in Southampton star James Ward-Prowse.
The Saints midfielder enjoyed his best season to date in the last campaign, scoring 10 goals and assisting a further five in the Premier League. And with that form naturally comes the interest of other clubs elsewhere, including West Ham, according to Brown.
The Daily Star journalist told GiveMeSport: “James Ward-Prowse is another name that Moyes is really interested in.
“They have ambition there, but it’s a question of whether they can pull off the kind of deals that would make a difference.”
It’s understandable why the Hammers are interested in the midfielder. He would add a different element to the department at the London Stadium. Whereas Declan Rice and Tomas Soucek aren’t exactly goalscoring midfielders (four goals and six goals in all competitions respectively last season) Ward-Prowse, who Ian Holloway hailed as a ‘top player’, consistently finds the back of the net – reaching double figures last season.
Whether a deal can be done for England international remains to be seen, however, with West Ham having already splashed the cash on Flynn Downes, Alphonse Areola, and Nayef Aguerd this summer.
TIF Thoughts on Paul Brown’s comments…
Brown’s comments are certainly interesting. But, as of right now, it seems as though West Ham have an interest that they won’t act on. As for Ward-Prowse, himself, as captain of Southampton, he will certainly have his loyalties, whilst also remaining ambitious.
As the World Cup approaches this winter, it will be interesting to see whether Ward-Prowse is still in a Southampton shirt come the start of the new Premier Leagues campaign. If he improves even further after last season, then he should remain amongst Gareth Southgate’s considerations, no matter where he is playing, however.