Centre back is a vital position, and one we perhaps have not got right in recent seasons. With Kurt Zouma and Nayef Aguerd though, it looked, at least on paper, that the club had signed two high-quality centre backs, who could cement their positions in the team for years to come.
Zouma, coming from European regulars Chelsea, working under several top-calibre managers, and Aguerd, who came with some great recommendations and looked like an absolute Rolls Royce for his country, Morocco. Let us start by looking at Zouma, who is now plying his trade at Al-Orobah, in the Saudi Pro League.
On the surface, this seems like an incredible fall from grace for a player who lifted a European trophy, a year or so ago. Zouma is only 29 – an age that should see a centre back at his peak.
However, Zouma has been cursed by injuries throughout his career, and has had an ongoing problem with one of his knees that has affected his ability to train, play more than a game a week, and impacted his speed, ability to turn and jump.
It was not that we did not know about Zouma’s injury problems when we signed him from Chelsea – when at our west London counterparts, he had issues with his knee that kept him out for some time, then a circulate ligament tear that meant Zouma did not play for almost a year. To be honest, his injury record is probably the reason Chelsea let him go, and why we were able to sign him.
Was it worth it though? We paid £29 million for Zouma in 2021, he went on to make 103 appearances for the Hammers across three years. During that time, he was captain and lifted the Europa Conference League trophy.
We also had Catgate, which received many column inches, and the main takeaway from it was that the club steadfastly backed Le Cat Booter. When not suffering from his knee injuries, he was a fantastic defender. Looking at his injury record with us though – persistent issues with that dodgy knee, plus hamstring and ankle issues, meant we could never quite rely on him.
This was a massive shame, because he could be a colossus, commanding in the air, and a real presence at the heart of our defence. That the club were clearly desperate to get Zouma’s reported £125k a week off the books, and that he has ended up in the Saudi Pro league, tells us about the level Zouma is now fit for.
Was he worth £29 million in transfer fees, plus approximately £20 million in wages? At around £475k a game, I am not so sure. Moving on to Nayef, I was genuinely excited when we signed Aguerd for around £30 million from Stade Rennes.
He was an exciting ball-playing centre back, a footballing hipster’s choice and had been linked with many top clubs across Europe. I recall seeing him play for Morocco, and he looked superb. At the time of the signing, French Football expert Julian Laurens said: ‘I think it’s a great signing, he has a good technical ability for a centre-back, which is quite rare. He’s tall, quick and reads the game well.’
Perhaps a surprising signing for Moyes, but perhaps less surprising that it didn’t work out. It never quite seemed to click for Aguerd with us, and he made several errors leading directly to goals conceded.
Aguerd played 58 times for us, and never secured a starting berth. Rumours abound that his family didn’t settle in London, and he never quite seemed happy at the club. He was close(ish) to joining Saudi Pro League club Al-Ittihad on a permanent deal, before departing on loan.
Aguerd is now on loan at Real Sociedad for the whole of the 24/25 season, where the Spanish speaker will be hoping to settle more than he did at West Ham. Despite only being on loan with no obligation or option, it seems Aguerd has no intention of returning to London, saying a lengthy goodbye to the club and its fans on social media.
This is a slight concern, as it would be good to see a return on a player who is still only 28, a regular for his country and cost us £30 million. At the moment, he goes down as another quite disastrous signing for West Ham. Is there any way back for either Zouma or Aguerd? Zouma, certainly not, as he is done at this level, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him retire at the end of this season.
Aguerd – possibly, but unlikely. As mentioned earlier, he appears to have said his goodbyes and will probably be far-more comfortable in Spain. I hope he has a great season for Sociedad, and we can recoup some of the 30 million we paid for him. At even more expensive fees, let us hope that Kilman and Todibo turn out to be better buys than their predecessors.
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