West Ham United may have got a lucky escape when Ajax hi-jacked their £14 million deal to sign Carlos Forbs from Premier League champions Manchester City last summer.
When it emerged that the Man City academy graduate was heading to the Johan Cryuff Arena rather than the London Stadium last summer, a West Ham fanbase who were already frustrated by their lack of new signings appeared in danger of boiling over.
Six months later, however, it is Ajax who may be looking at West Ham with a envy, rather than the other way around. While Mohamed Kudus and Edson Alvarez have been two of David Moyes’ stand-out performers this term – the duo joining from the Eredivisie giants in the final few weeks of the window – Carlos Forbs has done very little to suggest that he was ready to make the step up from under-21 football to the rigours of the senior game.
West Ham missed out on Carlos Forbs to Ajax
“Forbs doesn’t understand it at all,” former Eredivisie defender Kees Kwakman tells ESPN of a 19-year-old who continues to look like a kid in the men’s game.
“He doesn’t understand that he has to act as a midfielder when the ball has passed (changed hands). Individually, guys like that just have no idea and the technical staff can’t get it done either.”
“(Forbs) has no quality. He is much too expensive for a youth player.”
Forbs, given his age, may have been viewed at Ajax as ‘one for the future’. But it is not often even Dutch football’s biggest club part with a fee in excess of £10 million, and it’s fair to say a lot more was expected of Forbs even if this is his first season of senior football.
In his last 20 games, the forward has scored just one goal.
Premier League return on the cards
HITC Football understands that Ajax are open to offers for the Portugal Under 21 international already. Burnley and Nottingham Forest both held talks about a deal in January, while Forbs could also be offered a fresh start by Brighton and Hove Albion or Everton.
HITC has been informed that West Ham are still keeping tabs on Forbs’ situation too, though The Hammers could be forgiven if they are slightly put off by a disappointing spell in Dutch football.
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