It has already been confirmed that Michael Forbes, Tyron Akpata and Junior Robinson are all on their way out of West Ham United. Krisztian Hegyi, it seems, won’t be far behind.
The Hammers officially announced the departures of nine players in the immediate aftermath of relegation.
Alongside Lukasz Fabianski, Adama Traore and Axel Disasi, it was confirmed that a handful of youngsters would not see their contracts extended. Tyron Akpata’s exit was a slight surprise. Less so Junior Robinson. Michael Forbes has since signed for Dundee United on a two-year deal.
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Krisztian Hegyi, in contrast, still has a further 12 months on his own West Ham United contract.
It appears the talented shot-stopper will not be sticking around to see out his deal, however. According to Czech publication InFotbol, Hegyi will join Sparta Prague in the coming hours.
West Ham United starlet Krisztian Hegyi is set for Sparta Prague
Interestingly, Sparta Prague are another club co-owned by Daniel Kretinsky.
InFotbol talk up the Kretinsky connection as Hegyi prepares to leave one of the ‘Czech sphinx’s’ clubs for another.
It is reported that Hegyi has already passed his medical at Sparta. A transfer should be officially confirmed imminently.
Sparta – who should not be confused with Slavia Prague, the former employers of Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Coufal and El Hadji Malick Diouf – initially tried to sign the highly-experienced Martin Dubravka. However, the Burnley veteran turned down their advances, leaving Sparta to target a goalkeeper 14 years Dubravka’s junior.
Hegyi kept three clean sheets in 14 matches during a loan spell in his native Hungary with MTK Budapest in the second half of last season.
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Hegyi spoke out about his future at West Ham in March. He confirmed that the Hammers had the option to extend his contract until 2028.
And while the 23-year-old is keen to keep playing regular first-team football, he was not giving up on his dream of forcing his way into West Ham’s senior roster.
That was then, though.
It is not known at this stage whether Hegyi is joining Sparta Prague on loan, or whether he is leaving the London Stadium on a permanent basis. If it is the latter, do not be surprised if West Ham include a sell-on or buy-back clause as part of the agreement.
Currently the Under-21 coach at West Ham, Greg Lincoln called Hegyi an ‘outstanding’ young goalkeeper following a standout showing in the National League Cup last season. However, the Hammers are home to numerous goalkeeping prodigies at a similar stage in their development, primarily Finlay Herrick and Mason Terry.
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