How West Ham United’s bold £235m starting line-up could look like next season – if latest rumours are true. We look at how West Ham could line up in 2024/25 based on their likely summer signings and departures.
West Ham United are one of several sides who look likely to endure a summer of upheaval – they have a new manager in Julen Lopetegui, plenty of holes to fill in the side, and the very real chance several players leave over the course of the transfer window… or are rendered unavailable for very different reasons.
The rumour mill has linked the Hammers with a pretty broad range of players, some more plausible than others, but to prepare West Ham fans for what the immediate future might hold, we’ve put together a possible starting line-up for next season, along with some discussion over which players might stay and go and where they’re likely to strengthen things. It all adds up to approximately £235m worth of footballers – but will it be enough to get West Ham back into Europe next year?
The 31-year-old made the starting role his own last season after a frustrating first campaign at the London Stadium, and there doesn’t seem to be any reason to believe that Lopetegui will make any changes between the sticks. There will be considerable churn elsewhere on the field, but continuity at the very back seems assured as it stands.1
The defence is probably the area most in need of bolstering, and the Hammers have been linked with several left-backs from La Liga, including Girona’s Miguel Gutiérrez and Real Betis’ Juan Miranda – but based purely on recency bias, we’re going to speculate that they sign Sevilla and Argentina wing-back Acuña, who has been linked with a move to West Ham or Aston Villa.
An experienced and capable World Cup winner, there are downsides to a move for him, most notably his advancing years – he turns 33 in October – and fitness issues which frustrated him for periods of the 2023/24 season. Sevilla supposedly want €15m (£12.8m) but it’s likely he goes for a little less. Acuña would be a short-term upgrade, but not a long-term solution.
CB: Jacob Greaves (£15m)
The Hull City centre-half has been heavily linked with the Hammers after establishing himself as one of the best defenders in the Championship, and he seems to hit the sweet spot for a club in their position – a strong all-rounder who’s great in the air, comfortable with the ball at his feet, has a decent passing range and is young enough to continue improving.
Other clubs may well be interested, with Everton also linked already, but this does seem like the kind of ‘right player, right price’ deal on paper that it’s hard to look past. With other defenders either likely to leave, moving towards the end of their contract or struggling for form, this would be an investment in the present and future at the same time.
CB: Kurt Zouma (£30m)
Zouma only has one year left on his current deal with West Ham but doesn’t seem likely to move as it stands, with no tangible reports about other clubs looking to sign him. With change likely elsewhere at centre-back, Zouma and Konstantinos Mavropanos look like the most probable continuity candidates.
Rumours have persisted for six months now that Nayef Aguërd wants out of West Ham despite only signing last summer, Angelo Ogbonna is expected to leave the club in June, and there is little depth elsewhere. We expect Zouma and Mavropanos to stay with at least two new names coming in, barring unexpected twists.
RB: Vladimír Coufal (£5m)
There have been reports that West Ham are among the clubs chasing Torino right-back Raoul Bellanova, but few other rumours link them with a right-sided full-back and it seems more likely the club stick with Coufal, a solid performer whose place probably shouldn’t be under too much threat as it stands.
