Why West Ham should sign Moussa Wague in the summer
According to The Sun, West Ham United are still interested in signing Moussa Wague after missing him out to Ligue 1 side Nice last month.
The report also claims that the Hammers wanted Wague on loan but Barcelona decided to trade him on loan to Nice. It further states that boss David Moyes will travel to France to watch him play.
Wague, 21, moved to Belgium with KAP Eupen in 2107 after coming through the ranks at ASPIRE Academy in Qatar. He was then picked by Barcelona to play for the club’s B side in the summer of 2018 and made his senior debut against Girona in the Catalan Super Cup.
Since then, he has not featured beyond 6 times for Barcelona and is currently on loan with France to get regular game time, marking his Nice debut in a 2-1 win over Lyon last weekend.
Meanwhile, the Hammers have struggled despite starting well under Moyes, who replaced Manuel Pellegrini at the helm. The loss to Liverpool at the end of last month and the draw against Brighton has pushed them to the relegation with just 24 points in 25 league games.
However, they brought in reinforcements in the transfer window to add depth to several areas. Darren Randolph was brought in as a replacement for Roberto while Tomas Soucek was signed to reduce their defensive midfield crisis. Youngster Jarrod Bowen also moved to the London Stadium after a brilliant first half of the season with Hull City.
The Londoners haven’t made changes to their defensive unit, especially the right-back position. Former Manchester City man Pablo Zabaleta and Ryan Fredericks haven’t convinced enough and hence, interest in Moussa Wague makes sense.
The 21-year-old has done a decent job for the Catalans this season and it is only a matter of time before he develops his game with regular action.
Having gone to the finals of the African Cup of Nations in 2019 with the Senegal national team, Wague has come a long way from playing in Qatar to being signed by the La Liga giants.
Verdict
With Pablo Zabaleta ageing (35) and Fredericks unable to claim the spot for himself, Wague would be a viable right-back option. He is still young, meaning he could go on to play for the Hammers in the long run.
Therefore, Moyes must not stop as far as luring the youngster to England for the next season is concerned.
