West Ham United might have captured Axel Disasi long before January had it not been for Graham Potter.
Disasi joined West Ham United on the final day of the January transfer window and had a profound impact on their defence.
The Frenchman hit the ground running, so much so that West Ham wanted to sign Disasi on a permanent basis.
On a scale of 1-10, how confident are YOU that Nuno leads us straight back up? 👀
Here's why I think we can learn NOTHING from his time at Wolves 👇
Following relegation, however, their hopes are over. Disasi has said goodbye to West Ham fans as he prepares to return to parent club Chelsea, although his future beyond that point is uncertain.
The defender’s stay here in east London was all too brief and, had it not been for Potter, it might have actually been longer.
Potter didn’t want to sign West Ham hero Disasi
According to The Athletic, the idea of signing Disasi was floated to former Irons head coach Potter during the summer transfer window.
However, Potter had other ideas – not many of which worked out at West Ham.
Which players could actually BENEFIT from a Championship season? 🤨
The report suggests that Potter wanted a ball-playing central defender instead, with Igor Julio joining the club in an ill-fated loan move from Brighton.
It, of course, is easy to be wise after the event. Disasi may not have joined in the summer even if Potter was keen, and there’s no guarantee he’d have been as good in a very flawed team.
Still, it is somewhat jarring. Fine margins defined the relegation battle West Ham ended up losing, and perhaps they’d have fallen in their favour had Disasi been signed earlier.
No one will quite know that for certain but it does underline just how flawed West Ham’s recruitment can be at times.
Julio hardly featured and just as Disasi was coming in. Both players effectively wasted six months of their respective careers.
Oh, how differently the Disasi story could have gone.
Receive a digest of our best West Ham content each week direct to your mailbox
