Darren Randolph has suggested that he wasn’t allowed to leave West Ham United in the January transfer window.
Randolph rejoined the Hammers from Middlesbrough in January 2020 for around £4 million (BBC).
Read also: David Moyes could drop two key players for West Ham vs Everton clash, insider claims
Since then, he has only made five Premier League starts for West Ham though. Randolph slipped down the goalkeeping pecking order even more so after the summer arrival of Alphonse Areola from Paris Saint-Germain.
Leeds and Aston Villa were allegedly keen to sign the 34-year-old Hammers stopper in January according to a report from The Athletic.
Randolph ended up staying at the London Stadium though and hasn’t had a look-in as far as game-time for the first-team is concerned.
As a result, the experienced goalkeeper has lost his place in the Republic of Ireland starting XI.
It appears as though Randolph wasn’t happy to sit back and take the money though. He did actually want to leave West Ham in order to play more regularly…
Darren Randolph says West Ham didn’t allow him to leave
The 34-year-old goalkeeper has insisted on his Instagram account that he did actually try to leave the London Stadium but wasn’t allowed to do so:
The 34-year-old’s current contract with West Ham doesn’t expire until the summer of 2023.
The Hammers do need a third-choice goalkeeper but it could be argued that Randolph is too good to be wasting away on the bench and could certainly do a job for a top-half Championship side or even another Premier League club.
It remains to be seen whether David Moyes will let Randolph leave West Ham in the summer.
It’s very clear to see what the Irishman would want to do though…
Read also:
Report claims Moyes is desperate to sign £215k-a-week free agent but it doesn’t add up
Player West Ham sold for just £3m is hoping for call-up to England squad
Report: West Ham planning to ‘step in and sign extraordinary’ £9m winger in the summer
Insider: Moyes has a secret weapon as West Ham eye up blockbuster £60m striker signing