West Ham United are interested in signing Youri Tielemans this summer, who could be just the Irons’ second signing from Leicester City to date with a deal for the Belgium midfielder.
The Hammers have only shopped in the East Midlands once in their history so far with Alan Pardew raiding the Foxes back in 2003. Now, David Moyes is eying the same path in his bid to strengthen a side that finished the last Premier League season seventh in the standings.
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Moyes also has big shoes to fill at the London Stadium following Mark Noble retiring after 18 years in claret-and-blue. He additionally lost further depth in central midfield with Alex Kral returning to Spartak Moscow, having only featured six times whilst on loan last term.
West Ham are interested in signing Leicester midfielder Tielemans this summer
Noble retiring and Kral leaving has severally depleted an already thin area of Moyes’ ranks at West Ham. Declan Rice, Tomas Soucek and Manuel Lanzini are his only natural options, while Conor Coventry will be pushing for a first-team role after a loan spell with MK Dons.
Tielemans would add more than just depth to the London Stadium engine room should the 25-year-old move to east London. The Mirror (29/06, p45) report West Ham are interested in the Leicester star’s availability, having seen Arsenal back out of a transfer for Tielemans.
The Belgian remains keen on the prospect of playing for the Gunners, however, according to CBS journalist Ben Jacobs. Tielemans is ‘fully sold’ on the idea of joining Mikel Arteta’s side, who The Telegraph had reported were set to bid £25m as Leicester asked for £30m.
Leicester are loath to lose the 52-cap international, but accept his exit is potentially on the cards as Tielemans is out of contract next year. His departure would also go toward raising crucial funds for Brendan Rodgers’ rebuild at the King Power Stadium during this summer.
So, who else has moved between West Ham and Leicester during the Premier League-era amid Moyes’ interest in making Tielemans only the Irons’ second signing from the Foxes?
Deane is Tielemans’ only inspiration amid West Ham interest in Leicester ace
Brian Deane is the only source of inspiration Tielemans can look toward whilst considering a move to east London amid West Ham’s interest in the Leicester ace this summer. Pardew signed the centre-forward in October 2003, just weeks after he was cleared to take charge.
But Deane’s spell in claret-and-blue started on unhappy foundations, with the free transfer from Leicester describing his debut at Coventry City as ‘frustrating’. The three-cap England international would then score two goals in his second Irons outing at home to West Brom.
Further second-tier strikes followed against MK Dons, West Brom and Rotherham before a lengthy drought began from January. Deane did not net another league goal until the final day of the season at Wigan Athletic for his sixth in 26 outings, before joining Leeds United.
Newton the last to feature in a West Ham – Leicester deal amid Tielemans interest
Shaun Newton is the most recent player to feature in a transfer between West Ham and Leicester, amid Moyes’ interest in Tielemans, with his move to the East Midlands in 2007.
The Foxes signed the wide midfielder in a permanent deal during the summer sales after an initial loan spell. But Newton would only go on to reach 19 appearances, of which nine came whilst on loan, before retiring in 2008 – some way shy of his 49 with the Hammers.
Connolly selected Foxes switch over Sunderland interest to seal Irons exit in 2004
David Connolly overlooked interest from Sunderland to secure a £500k transfer from West Ham to Leicester in 2004, per The Irish Times. The Irons had accepted offers from both the Black Cats and the Foxes for the then-27-year-old as they sought to reduce their wage bill.
The 41-cap Ireland star had joined the Hammers the previous year, but failed to fire them to promotion. He offered West Ham 10 goals in 39 second-tier games, plus four in six cup ties. Connolly would then hit 17 in 54 with Leicester before joining Wigan in 2005 for £2m.
Ferdinand sealed swift West Ham exit with Leicester move in 2003
Les Ferdinand sealed a swift exit from West Ham in 2003 when the centre-forward joined Leicester. He had only moved to east London from north and Tottenham Hotspur earlier in the year as Glenn Roeder bid to improve an attack that left the Irons bottom of the table.
But during the course of his short-term contract with West Ham, Ferdinand only managed two goals from 14 Premier League games. His lack of form would fail to prevent the Irons’ relegation in 18th, after which he joined Leicester for 29 top-flight outings and 12 goals.
Impey featured in first Prem-era deal between West Ham and Leicester in 1999
Andy Impey featured in the first transfer between West Ham and Leicester in the Premier League-era back in 1999. The Foxes bought the defensive midfielder from the Hammers in the mid-season market to cap an 18-month spell in claret-and-blue after joining from QPR.
The London-born anchor only amassed 32 appearances through his time in claret-and-blue as he struggled to maintain a consistent presence. But Impey found a greater role with the Foxes for 172 games in all competitions up to his departure for Nottingham Forest in 2004.
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