LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 08: David Moyes manager of West Ham United speaks with the assembled Media during his Press Conference at London Stadium on November 8, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Avril Husband/West Ham United via Getty Images)
Just in: David Moyes publicly request for serie A beast with 11 goals this season after poor performance…..
During the January transfer window, West Ham and David Moyes considered a number of potential attacking additions, but none of them worked out. Arsenal rejected a loan deal for Emile Smith-Rowe, Nordsjaelland’s Ibrahim Osman was thought to be too expensive, and they attempted to buy Jota from Al-Ittihad but ran into tax problems.
Jhon Duran of Aston Villa, Steven Bergwijn of Ajax, and Jack Clarke of Sunderland were all targets for deals, but none of them worked out. The club “looked really, really hard” for a good candidate, according to Moyes, but those searches will now have to wait until the summer.
Albert Gudmundsson of Genoa is one player the Hammers are supposedly determined to go back after. Midway through the season, the Serie A team refused to sell him, but plans are already in motion for a transfer after the season is over.
West Ham double down on Gudmundsson.
Now, according to Italian outlet Tutto Juve, West Ham have “stepped up” their interest in Gudmundsson as they try to bring him to the Premier League. They’re one of a number of teams to ask “for information”, alongside domestic giants Fiorentina and Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen.
The player had the chance to leave when Genoa were relegated to the second division in 2021/22 but wanted to stay and lead them back up, which he managed to do. Similarly, he felt a mid-season departure inappropriate this year and hopes to help his side finish in the top half before assessing his future in June.
“Devastating” Gudmundsson is worth waiting for.
Gudmundsson has played 73 games for Genoa overall and is one of the team’s most important figures, as his 100% starting rate when available this season demonstrates. Team-mate Kevin Strootman has called him an “exemplary professional” and a “devastating player”, and his numbers offer us some insight into why.
In addition to a couple of goals in the cup, Gudmundsson has scored nine times in the league this season, which ranks him sixth in the overall competition leaderboard. He’s over-performed his xG by a whopping 4.8, and while that statistically makes him the seventh-most clinical finisher in Europe’s big-five leagues, it also suggests his current levels of finishing may not be sustainable.
On the flip side, though, his assist numbers will improve if he lines up alongside higher-quality team-mates. The Icelandic international has created more chances (55) than any other player in Serie A in 2023/24, and sits third for expected assists (4.2), but his team-mates have only converted two of the opportunities he’s fashioned.
Primarily a second striker, he would surely relish the chance of linking up with the likes of Mohammed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen to make West Ham’s new-look even more exciting, and finally allow Moyes to move on to other transfer priorities.
