What a busy summer transfer window 2024 we ended up having. But as I write, there is the potential that we could be adding a further player after the deadline in former Sheffield United defender John Egan.
The Republic of Ireland defender played in a behind closed door friendly against Dagenham and Redbridge with us still contemplating at this stage whether to make him our next signing. Kaelan Casey, the talented England Under 19s defender, was not allowed to go on loan as it was expected that he would be given the fourth choice centre back role.
But it appears Lopetegui may prefer to bring in an experienced pro in Egan. He left Sheffield United, which is ironically where we signed one of our first players of this window from in Wes Foderingham, who had also been released by the Blades.
Many people question this signing but it was a smart move to get a player who played in over 20 games in the Premier League last season. He will be our third choice and is a strong back up keeper, and he also counts as home grown so helps with our quota. At the age of 33, he still has a few years ahead of him before retirement.
Another early signing was at the other end of the age spectrum and that was in the unknown quantity Guilherme. Tim Steidten had been to Brazil a number of times prior to his summer visit and hadn’t come back with any players so he was under pressure to sign this window.
Guilherme is the biggest gamble of the window for us. An 18 year old who was relatively inexperienced in Brazil let alone in European football, but one who is thought to have a huge amount of potential. The only slight thing that this deal has caused as a negative is that his wages are far more than any of the other 18 year olds who were in our academy and pushing for a first team place.
This could give us a few negotiation problems when it comes to giving these players deals as they could use Guilherme as the benchmark. If he turns out to be a superstar then it’s all fine but should he be a flop, we may have created another Reece Oxford situation where the club doesn’t like to give out those contracts anymore.
Another player where there are a few question marks over is Niclas Fullkrug and I am writing this on the back of hearing he could be ruled out with an injury picked up on international duty. The curse of West Ham continues. When I look at the prototype of forward that works at West Ham, he doesn’t seem to fit the bill because he isn’t blessed with pace, power and dribbling ability which seems to be what we need.
Of course I am not writing him off now because he is a German international who scored in the most recent tournament for them and played in the Champions League final. He clearly has the pedigree of a top forward but is he the right forward for us? Time will tell.
The signing of Summerville is one that really excites me. He is a player the fans love to see. Skilful, pacy and direct, Championship player of the year and one who I think can get better and better.
I think Rodriquez and Soler are both exciting prospects. Rodriquez has 30 caps for Argentina and has won the World Cup, that’s some pedigree. Soler I haven’t ever seen play but I hear he is composed and good on the ball and I think that is perhaps something we are lacking in the middle.
To beat Juventus to the signing of a player like we did for Todibo is impressive. The player had also been linked with Manchester United and his loan will turn to an obligation to buy because all he has to do is start five Premier League games for it to happen. I am excited to see the player he can develop into.
The two signings that have really impressed me this summer, however, are Kilman and Wan-Bissaka. Kilman was with the manager at Wolves and he made it his priority to sign him as soon as he got into post. We did this.
This to me showed the manager how much we back him. He was his leader at Wolves and he has already shown how good he is on the ball with his assist for Bowen’s goal at Palace. He is exactly the signing we needed, and I also think the signing of Aaron Wan-Bissaka is inspired.
He has been brilliant in the games he played and I always rated him at Palace and Manchester United. I was very surprised that United let him go but it’s much to our advantage. I love his ability to read the tackle.
People have said he can’t get forward but from what I’ve seen, he certainly can. In terms of departures, most of the players that went were expected. Perhaps Ward-Prowse going was a disappointment.
I understand it but I think he maybe could have offered us options from the bench. Zouma’s departure I understood as he is finished at the top level, as sad as that is.
Aguerd always seemed to not be entirely happy at West Ham so it’s probably the right time for him to go. Cornet is a strange one and I’d be very interested to see what impact he has at Southampton because he really hasn’t done it for us but you could argue he hasn’t had the chance.
It will be interesting to see if he has any impact at Southampton or whether these mysterious calf injuries have massively affected him. Flynn Downes was another understandable departure but one with a slight tinge of sadness being the big West Ham fan that he is and he didn’t fully get his chance and I wish him all the best.
It was of course sad to see Ogbonna leave too. He has been a great servant of the club and we are now down to just two current players in Cresswell and Antonio that played for us at Upton Park. Kehrer and Benrahma completed their departures, which again was totally expected and it was the right move as well.
When I reflect on the transfer window I think it’s been a very successful one for us. My only slight concern is the forward situation again. I feel that had we added Jhon Duran from Aston Villa this window, like we were massively linked with, I would feel a lot better. The jury is still out for me whether we have finally solved our need for a new forward.
The West Ham Way Events at the Colour Factory are back. Before the Ipswich game on the 5th October, our host Martin Allen will welcome former player and manager Alan Curbishley as our guest. The event will be from 11am to 2pm and the venue is no more than a ten-minute walk from the stadium. You can get tickets here: tickettailor.com/events/prematchevents/1310339
The next event after this is the Manchester United game on the 27th October and our guest will be Tony Gale. Patreons get discounted tickets so make sure you sign up now here: patreon.com/thewesthamway
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