Former West Ham United striker Frank McAvennie has said that the Hammers should not try and sign Southampton captain James Ward-Prowse this summer.
The Saints midfielder has been heavily linked with a St Mary’s exit this summer, with a number of clubs linked with trying to land the midfielder, potentially for a reduced fee due to Southampton’s relegation to the Championship.
The Guardian have reported that West Ham are considering a move for Ward-Prowse this summer, should captain Declan Rice leave in a big money move at the end of the season, with Arsenal the club most-linked with landing the 24-year-old.
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Should Rice leave as expected, The Guardian have suggested that West Ham will look to sign Fulham’s Portuguese midfielder Joao Palhinha as a replacement, but are also considering a move for Ward-Prowse as an alternative.
Despite scoring eight goals and providing four assists for the Saints this season in the Premier League, McAvennie, who scored 49 league goals for West Ham across two spells between 1985 and 1992, says that signing Ward-Prowse would not actually make West Ham any better and therefore, the club should avoid making a move for him.
“Listen he can take a free-kick and he can take a corner, but has he got that grit and determination in midfield? I don’t know,” he told West Ham Zone .
“As I say we’ve got good players. Ward-Prowse is a good player, but we’ve got good players. Some players are not getting a game like Fornals, he’d be in the same bracket as that.
“I don’t think he’d come to West Ham to play cup games. I don’t see why he’d do that. I think he’s a decent player but I don’t think he’s going to come to West Ham and make them better. I don’t think so.
“He’d fit into it with good players but he won’t take them up a level. No disrespect to him, he’s a good player, but they’ve got good players and I don’t think he comes in and takes them up.
“He’s not won anything, so he’s not a winner and he’s not going to make them a better team. I don’t think he’d be a good signing.”
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