David Moyes will be hoping that West Ham United can build on last season’s impressive campaign as the Hammers look to assemble a squad that can compete both on the domestic and European fronts.
West Ham reached the Europa League semi-finals last season before being beaten by eventual winners Eintracht Frankfurt.
While chasing European glory, the Londoners finished seventh in the Premier League and qualified for next season’s Conference League.
The Irons have already signed Nayef Aguerd, Alphonse Areola and Flynn Downes this summer. Further acquisitions are in the pipeline with Chelsea striker Armando Broja set to join on a permanent deal, according to Fabrizio Romano.
While the club’s recruitment team are chasing new faces, HITC Sport takes a look at five former West Ham United players David Moyes should re-sign.
Former West Ham United players David Moyes should re-sign
Jesse Lingard
Despite considering a lucrative offer from Saudi Arabia, the Evening Standard reports that West Ham are ‘optimistic’ that they will win the race to sign the attacking midfielder.
The England international has been a free agent since leaving Manchester United at the end of last month.
But with West Ham’s Premier League opener against Manchester City coming in 20 days time, Moyes will be keen to wrap up his summer business as quickly as possible.
The 29-year-old, who endured a frustrating year with the Red Devils last season, scored nine goals and provided five assists from 16 games for West Ham, during his loan spell in the second half of the 2020-21 campaign.
With the World Cup on the horizon, Lingard will be hoping to secure a place in Gareth Southgate’s squad and a return to the London Stadium where he previously thrived and flourished would be the best move for him.
Sebastian Haller
West Ham paid a club record £45m to bring Haller to London from Frankfurt but the Ivory Coast international struggled to justify his steep price tag.
From 54 games for the Hammers, the striker scored 14 goals before joining Erik ten Hag’s Ajax last January.
Under the now Manchester United boss, Haller became one of the most formidable strikers on the continent and helped the Amsterdam giants to back-to-back Eredivisie titles.
From 66 games for Ajax, the 28-year-old scored 47 goals and provided 16 assists. Haller’s form in Holland caught Borussia Dortmund’s attention and he’s been signed by the Bundesliga side who have lost Norwegian superstar Erling Haaland to Manchester City.
Haller is in the form of his life and if he does feel like he has unfinished business in the Premier League once conquering Germany then a return to the London Stadium could be a possibility.
Dimitri Payet
The 35-year-old remains at his beloved Marseille after an 18-month spell with the Hammers and the Frenchman will likely finish his career at the Stade Velodrome.
But if the charismatic and mercurial playmaker wanted another spell with West Ham before calling time on his career, Moyes should instruct the club’s hierarchy to make the deal happen.
Watching Payet in full flow was a delight for West Ham fans and he continues to produce moments of brilliance as he enters the latter stages of his career.
In 60 games for the Hammers, Payet scored 15 goals and laid on 23 assists, averaging well over a goalscoring involvement in every other game.
Josh Cullen
The Republic of Ireland international has followed Vincent Kompany to Burnley via Anderlecht after spending two seasons in Belgium following his departure from the Hammers.
A product of the West Ham academy, the 26-year-old made ten first team appearances for the Hammers and with him only moving to Turf Moor this summer, Moyes and the club’s scouting department will likely be keeping a close eye to see how he fares under the former Manchester City captain in England.
Following the retirement of Mark Noble and Alex Kral returning to Spartak Moscow after an underwhelming loan spell, West Ham have bolstered their midfield options with the arrival of former Swansea man Downes.
But if Cullen impresses in the second tier like Downes did, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see West Ham try and re-sign the all-action midfielder.
Reece Oxford
After gaining experience on loan at Reading and Gladbach, Augsburg signed the former England Under-20 international on a permanent deal after an initial loan spell.
The 23-year-old has become a regular for the Bundesliga outfit and he made 30 league starts last season.
Showcasing his reading of the game and ability to sniff out danger, Oxford, who made 17 appearances for West Ham averaged 2.4 interceptions and 5.6 clearances per game last season, according to WhoScored. He ranked in the Bundesliga’s top three in each specific category.
Oxford is gaining priceless experience playing in one of Europe’s top five leagues and being a regular in the side.
With his prime years ahead of him, West Ham may look to re-sign their former academy star in the coming years.
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