Southampton were reportedly close to signing West Ham United full-back Ben Johnson in the summer, before pulling out of the deal.
According to The Athletic, the reasoning behind Southampton pulling the plug on the deal for Ben Johnson was the large loan fee being demanded by West Ham.
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The young right-back has regressed badly over the past 12 months or so and with that in mind, a loan move away from the Hammers would have been good for him.
However, he remained at the London Stadium in the end and will have to fight for his place under David Moyes until January at the very least…
Southampton pulled plug on deal to sign Ben Johnson from West Ham
The Saints walked away from a deal to sign the 23-year-old full-back in the end because of a high loan fee being demanded by the Hammers.
Johnson has 87 appearances for West Ham (Transfermarkt), but if he doesn’t improve massively, he won’t be adding to that tally anytime soon.
His positional play and concentration levels are truly horrendous and considering the position he plays in, those weaknesses can be really costly for West Ham.
As harsh as it sounds, I cannot seeing Ben Johnson having a future with West Ham, or with any other Premier League club for that matter.
The Championship may well be more suited to the 23-year-old’s level.
Who knows though, maybe Johnson will turn things around over the next few months and still forge out a career for himself with West Ham.
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