The uncomfortable truth about David Moyes’ boy James Ward-Prowse as reality begins to bite at West Ham United.
Many West Ham fans were revelling in the form of James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez after the sale of Declan Rice to Arsenal.
Hammers supporters proudly declared their team and midfield was better after the signings of set-piece specialist Ward-Prowse and Mexican destroyer Alvarez.
When West Ham beat Arsenal in the Carabao Cup last month that opinion was given more weight.
David Moyes even stated that may be the case as he nibbled back at some comments from Rice earlier this season.
There was outrage among many when Ward-Prowse was snubbed by Gareth Southgate for three consecutive England squads despite impressive stats for West Ham.
But the uncomfortable truth about Moyes’ boy Ward-Prowse becomes clear as reality begins to bite at West Ham.
When West Ham were being linked with Ward-Prowse in the summer many fans voiced concerns.
The general consensus was that – besides his excellent deliveries from dead ball situations – he offers very little in open play.
Well those fears have looked well founded in recent games. Although it may not be all his own fault.
Ward-Prowse is stuck in this no-man’s land under Moyes where he is neither a defensive midfielder nor an offensive one. And the truth is, it doesn’t really work.
The former Southampton captain is a great professional. And he’s clearly working hard and doing his best. He is also clearly a huge asset for any squad with his dead ball skills.
But using the good old fashioned EYES test – West Ham fans have been asking ‘what does he do?’ with some justification.
Yes Ward-Prowse keeps the ball moving and is neat and tidy. But he’s neither particularly mobile or powerful and looks and feels like a throwback to the latter years of Mark Noble.
When his set pieces are making a difference for West Ham then he is obviously worth his weight in gold.
But recent performances may have given us a big clue as to why no other top clubs went in for him in the summer despite the 28-year-old being available for just £30m.
The Englishman was the only signing chosen by Moyes in the summer. Alvarez, Mohammed Kudus and Konstantinos Mavropanos were all Tim Steidten picks.
And the cold, hard truth – as harsh as it may sound – is that besides his set pieces, Ward-Prowse is what many West Ham fans feared he would be – a pretty average and unremarkable midfield player in open play.
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