West Ham signed three players in the January transfer window.
Darren Randolph and Jarrod Bowen arrived on permanent deals from Middlesbrough and Hull City respectively, whilst Tomas Soucek was brought in on loan from Slavia Prague. The Hammers do have an option to buy the Czech ace, however.
Three new signings was the absolute bare minimum for West Ham, however. They really could, and should, have done more.
David Moyes desperately needed a new right-back and a centre-forward. And it could be argued that the addition of just one central midfielder wasn’t enough either.
Biggest STAR Your Club Are Trying To SIGN This Month
So here are three players we think the Hammers should have signed on top of the three that they brought in…
Joachim Maehle
Joakim Maehle (left) ( Photo Gregory Van Gansen / Photo News ) via Getty Images)
The Genk ace was wanted by West Ham, according to reliable club insider ExWHUemployee:
Yes but I believe the offer has been rejected (for now) we are now in for another danish right back Maehle from Genk too. https://t.co/KvHpaGS6Rq
— ExWHUemployee (@ExWHUemployee) January 28, 2020
I think we have already. The two danish right backs we are in for have the same agent. Think it is felt by the club Maehle is the better one going forward but the other is better defensively https://t.co/ApH2Y6TczG
— ExWHUemployee (@ExWHUemployee) January 28, 2020
The 22-year-old has racked up four assists in 20 league outings for Genk this season (Transfermarkt), so it is clear to see that he likes to venture forward.
He is also a very solid defender.
In six Champions League outings for Genk this season, Maehle averaged 3.3 tackles, 1.3 interceptions, 1.7 clearances and 0.7 blocks per game (Who Scored).
He recorded an impressive 32 ball recoveries too (Uefa.com).
And it could be argued that Maehle would have been a clear upgrade on Ryan Fredericks and Pablo Zabaelta. At the very least he would have provided strong competition for the former Fulham man.
Abdoulaye Toure
Abdoulaye Toure (Photo by JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER/AFP via Getty Images)
West Ham were linked heavily with a move for the powerful Nantes midfielder.
France Football claimed towards the end of the window that the Hammers could have signed the 25-year-old for just £12.5 million. And missing out on a player with Toure’s quality for that kind of fee is criminal.
In 21 Ligue 1 outings for Nantes this season, Toure has an impressive pass success rate of 84.8%. He has also averaged 1.3 tackles and 1.2 interceptions during those games. (Who Scored).
At 6ft 2in tall and powerfully built, the French midfielder would have added some much needed physicality to West Ham’s midfield, and it is such a shame that they missed out on him.
Krzysztof Piatek
Krzysztof Piatek (Photo by TF-Images/Getty Images)
Corriere Della Sera claimed a couple of weeks ago that West Ham wanted to sign the the Poland international.
The 24-year-old ended up joining Hertha Berlin on deadline day for around £23 million (Goal).
And for that fee, the Hammers could have got their hands on a really top class striker.
Ok, he has endured a tough campaign thus far, with just five goals in 20 appearances for Milan (Transfermarkt). But it must be remembered that he scored 30 goals in 42 games for Genoa and Milan last season.
Piatek is also just 24 – a great age for a striker to arrive in the Premier League. He would have provided strong competition for Sebastien Haller, and possibly could have brought the best out in the Frenchman.
If West Ham would have signed the three players mentioned as well as the three that they brought in, there is absolutely no way that they would have gone down.
But instead the owners chose to do the absolute bare minimum in the transfer market once again.
And the Hammers could end up paying a very heavy price indeed.