A Sky Sports man says Man United can learn from West Ham over transfers and strategy after very contrasting summer windows.
Ridiculed for not being able to attract players during his doomed stint at Manchester United, West Ham boss David Moyes has had to work a minor miracle at West Ham to repair his damaged reputation all these years on.
When Moyes took over from Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford it was memorably stated he was now ‘standing on the shoulders of giants’.
Moyes has said in interviews since that line struck and stuck with him during his short spell at Man United and in the years he has had to mull over the experience since.
Moyes recently reflected on the experience at Man United, likening it to being in the penthouse suite looking down on everyone else.
“When you go to Man United, it’s like looking out of the penthouse window on the rooftops,” Moyes said.
“You’re higher up. You see everything because they’re right at the top of world football.
“There will be a lot of people thinking they are not at the moment, but as a football club, because of what they’ve got, they are.
“So, I’ve had a chance to see, and that’s what I want to do with West Ham. I’ve had a chance to see what it’s like and I want the opportunity to get back to that level.
“In the short time I’ve been here we’ve taken the fast lift to the top. The job now is to make sure we’re able to maintain it and stay there.
“We are still building here at West Ham. We have to keep putting a few layers on before we can be talked about as challenging.”
West Ham certainly are building something very exciting indeed if their busy summer of transfers is anything to go by.
The Hammers are on the verge of their eighth signing of the window as Brazil star Lucas Paqueta jets in to London for a medical today ahead of a club record £50m plus move.
Paqueta, 25 today, will join other young, impressive captures at West Ham including Italy striker Gianluca Scamacca and highly-rated Moroccan defender Nayef Aguerd.
The signing threatens to take West Ham’s spending close to the £200m mark.
But it is the way West Ham have gone about their business that has been just as impressive as the signings acquired and the amount spent.
So much so that a Sky Sports man says Man United can learn from West Ham over transfers and strategy.
Erik ten Hag and the Red Devils have been criticised for spending the entire summer chasing Frenkie de Jong, not taking clear and decisive action over wantaway Cristiano Ronaldo and for seeming to lack a coherent recruitment plan and philosophy.
Man United fans and journalists point to the sudden signing of 30-year-old Casemiro – as good a player as he is – as evidence of that.
In contrast West Ham have moved on multiple targets this summer and if and when it became clear the club would not be able to get a deal done, they quickly moved on to other targets.
Could not get Jesse Lingard or James Ward-Prowse? Moved to sign Maxwel Cornet and Paqueta.
Beaten to Filip Kostic, go and sign Emerson.
Even the signing of hugely promising young midfielder Flynn Downes shows West Ham are thinking about the future as well as the here and now.
And Sky Sports man Mark McAdam says Man United can learn a lot from West Ham’s approach.
“Already this summer West Ham have spent around £127m and they’ve still got a bit more in change as well,” McAdam said on Sky Sports News’ Transfer Talk show on Friday lunchtime.
“They haven’t finished there, they’re still going as well, that’s the most significant thing. It’s a big change at West Ham, a very different philosophy to what they’ve done in the past where they’ve tried to almost get value for money and try and get players in (that way).
“The other thing that’s really impressed me with David Moyes and the recruitment team at West Ham this summer is that they’ve been in for a lot of players, haven’t necessarily (always) got them but have walked away and gone on to other targets.
“And I think that’s something that perhaps even Manchester United will look at and think ‘well we’ve spent six weeks trying to chase Frenkie de Jong and we didn’t get him and how many other targets did we potentially miss out on because we focused all our attention and energy on just one player’.
“Whereas West Ham have been very quick to move on to the next target. If the deal can’t be done or they’ve been turned down, they’ve moved on very quickly and it feels like they’ve had a plan this summer.”
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