How West Ham will use January transfer window to ease relegation fears

The WhatsApp messages and emails were flying around West Ham United following last Saturday’s inevitable 3-0 defeat away to Manchester City.

There was a growing sense of recrimination in the air with serious questions being asked about the state of the squad and what Nuno Espírito Santo actually wants in the forthcoming January window. And what can be done.

At the same time there are counter-claims that the head coach himself has not been yet decisive in communicating what – and who – he prefers to sign in the fight to keep West Ham up.

It has also been pointed out that Nuno knew the strength of the ageing squad when he took over and should have elicited more of a response. They were 19^th then, back in September, and are 18^th now and there has been barely a bounce.

West Ham are already five points adrift of safety and have fewer points – 13 as opposed to 14 – after 17 games than when they were last relegated from the Premier League in 2011 under the hapless Avram Grant.

They have not won since beating newly-promoted Burnley 3-2, one of only two teams below them, in early November with three defeats and three draws since then. That game was also preceded by a large protest from the fans against the way the club is being run. The atmosphere, at times, has been toxic.

There are fears from supporters that, after years of alleged mismanagement, they are simply sleepwalking to relegation.

On Tuesday the West Ham United Fan Advisory Board, which represents 25,000 fans and various groups, issued an update on its vote of no confidence aimed at the “club’s leadership” four months ago.

It claimed West Ham are “currently in crisis, mired in the relegation spots, a revolving-door destination for managers and about to confirm a disastrous set of financial results”. adding: “Comparisons with the 2003 ‘sleepwalk to relegation’ are becoming far too frequent for comfort”.

In that season West Ham went down with 42 points – 16 more than the 19^th placed club and the most not to stay up in a 38-game season – believing they were simply too good to be relegated with a team that contained Paolo Di Canio, Jermain Defoe, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole and David James.

Is there the same complacency again with, evidently, a far weaker team?

The FAB statement continued: “To be overtaken by two newly promoted clubs [Sunderland and Leeds United] plus a number of other organically far smaller outfits is a direct reflection of the leadership.”

Last season, West Ham finished 14^th, insulated from the threat of relegation because the three promoted sides were so poor but finishing with a run of just two wins in their last 11 games (and no win in the first eight of those).

The fact is that West Ham’s season this time around may already have reached a defining period. The next four league games see them at home to Fulham and Brighton and Hove Albion before two even bigger fixtures: away to bottom-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers and at home to Nottingham Forest.

Both are Nuno’s former clubs. Both are also in the relegation mix – Wolves almost certainly down and Forest fighting, like West Ham and Leeds United and 19^th-placed Burnley not to join them.

If it all goes wrong in those four matches then West Ham may almost be too far behind already, with Wolves, in the first week of what is shaping up to be a huge January transfer window for them. Would that further affect their plans and what would it mean for Nuno who was appointed to replace Graham Potter on a three-year contract?

The problem for West Ham, facing financial challenges and a lack of ‘headroom’ over the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules, is how extensive those squad changes can be.

Money will be found, sources insist, because it has to be. Relegation simply cannot be contemplated. But some of that money may also have to be generated through sales or, more likely, loan deals to make room in the finances.

Cash could be raised by selling Lucas Paquetá but Nuno has made it clear he does not want to lose the Brazilian international in this window. He regards Paquetá as West Ham’s best player but has struggled to get the best out of him.

There is also a feeling at West Ham that Paquetá owes the club a full season playing for them and fighting to keep them up after the betting case that was brought against him. He was subsequently cleared of spot-fixing charges but it affected his form.

It will also be interesting to see whether Jorge Mendes, the super-agent who has worked so closely with Nuno, who was one of his first clients, is involved in any of the January moves and how much control is taken by co-chairman David Sullivan.

West Ham are interested in signing striker Jorgen Strand Larsen from Wolves, a club who have strong links with Mendes, but who are likely to face competition from Crystal Palace.

Nuno is pushing for the signing but can West Ham afford it? Wolves turned down £55m from Newcastle United last summer and while they might sell if they are resigned to their fate, the fee will not come down substantially in this window.

As an alternative, Nuno is interested in Coventry City’s Ellis Simms although it would appear highly unlikely that the promotion-chasing Championship leaders would even contemplate selling the 24-year-old former Everton striker.

There has also been an enquiry for Simms’s team-mate Haji Wright which was summarily dismissed by Coventry who quoted a price of £200m for the American international.

What is certain is that – once again – West Ham need a centre-forward. It has been an almost cursed position for the club going back many years. Since 2010, West Ham have signed more than 50 forwards and spent more than £300m in the search for a reliable No 9 (although Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio – signed as a right-back – and Demba Ba – played just 12 games – were undoubted successes).

Poor record of effective signings

The latest crisis is another damning indictment of their scattergun signings which have also left them chronically short of athleticism in midfield and is symptomatic of changes not just made in management but in their recruitment.

It goes back to departure of David Moyes and investing so heavily not just in Julen Lopetegui – and the players he wanted – but also in technical director Tim Steidten. The signing of Niclas Füllkrug, who never appeared suited to the pace of Premier League football and, as an older striker, had a poor fitness record is another sign of that failure.

The German international is joining AC Milan who will cover his wages in full but will not pay a loan fee and there is only an option to buy, not an obligation. Füllkrug was signed by Steidten for £27m and the 32-year-old has scored three goals in 30 appearances and none this season.

Eyebrows were raised when Lopetegui’s successor Potter was allowed to bring in Kyle Macaulay as head of recruitment having worked with him previously at Brighton and Chelsea. It cost more than £1m to release Macaulay from his contract at Stamford Bridge. But is it right for a manager to, effectively, appoint the man overseeing a club’s recruitment?

It did not work and Macaulay left after Potter was sacked.

West Ham brought in Callum Wilson on a free transfer. The 33-year-old is now the only centre-forward and he has not started any of the last three games.

Nuno also may turn to Fulham’s Adama Traoré, who he tried to sign at Forest in the summer and who played for him at Wolves and whose contract expires next summer. Fulham may be willing to accept a fee now with West Ham likely to loan Luis Guilherme, another big-money – £25.5m signing – who, so far, has not worked out.

One of Potter’s big acquisitions was Mads Hermansen for £20m from relegated Leicester City having lobbied hard to sign the goalkeeper. The 25-year-old Dane has been such a disaster that he was dropped after four games having conceded 11 goals and is also likely to be one of those loaned out in January.

Even West Ham’s successes are causing problems. El Hadji Malick Diouf arrived in the summer but he, like the other first-choice full-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka, is now at the Africa Cup of Nations and will miss the crucial forthcoming series of games.

Defence – like attack – has been a serious concern. West Ham have only kept one clean sheet all season – against Forest, before Nuno was sacked – and given the Portuguese coach’s reputation for, at least, making his teams hard to beat then there has been no improvement.

Centre-half would therefore appear another priority. especially as Nuno has little faith in Igor Julio who is on loan from Brighton and the others such as Jean-Clair Todibo and Max Kilman, signed at great expense, have continued to struggle.

West Ham know they must be active, and creative, with the window opening. Will it be enough? The fear is that they are sleepwalking to relegation and that years of chop and change amid accusations of complacency have caught up with them.