The biggest surprise of the West Ham transfer window that nobody’s talking about. West Ham United enjoyed a terrific summer transfer window in the end, with Julen Lopetegui having made nine fantastic new signings.
The summer transfer window was an incredibly busy one for West Ham from start to finish, and Julen Lopetegui ended things with a flourish by bringing Carlos Soler to the London Stadium on deadline day.
In fact, the West Ham manager probably oversaw the best transfer window we have ever witnessed at the club. Deadline day yesterday was a frantic one for the Hammers, with Soler coming in and a whole host of players leaving.
Lopetegui achieved one of his main remits on deadline day – getting rid of some of the fringe players who have offered very little over the past 12 months. Kurt Zouma, James Ward-Prowse, Maxwel Cornet and Nayef Aguerd all left the London Stadium on season-long loan deals.
Earlier on in the window, the likes of Thilo Kehrer, Said Benrahma, Ben Johnson, Angelo Ogbonna and Flynn Downes were all moved on. The signings made by the Hammers this summer really are huge upgrades on all those names mentioned above.
It really was a terrific window for the club overall. However, there is one big elephant in the room that nobody’s talking about…
Nobody’s talking about West Ham transfer window surprise. Lopetegui, Tim Steidten and David Sullivan did all they could to make this window the perfect 10/10.
We were probably two signings away from making that a reality, whilst it would have been good to sell the likes of Cornet, Zouma and Aguerd, rather than just loan them out.
However, one thing happened in the summer transfer window that surpasses all of that regarding the element of surprise. Andy Irving is still a West Ham player…how is that even possible!
He was a really strange signing for the Hammers last summer, after David Moyes brought the midfielder from SK Austria Klagenfurt to the London Stadium on transfer deadline day, and then immediately loaned him back to the Austrian club.
The former Hearts man is still yet to play a single competitive minute for West Ham, and I was convinced that he’d be moved on in the summer. Celtic were strongly linked with signing the midfielder on deadline day, but he remained at the London Stadium in the end.
I have to admit, I’m hugely surprised by the fact that the Scot is still in the building. I don’t see what he offers us, and a move away would have freed up extra wages.
Perhaps Lopetegui sees something in Irving that I don’t or maybe, clubs just didn’t push hard enough to sign him. Andy Irving’s West Ham dream still alive. Last season, the 24-year-old midfielder suggested that it was his dream to play for West Ham in the Premier League.
That seemed a little far fetched at the time, but Lopetegui gave the Scot plenty of chances to shine during the friendly games this summer.
James Ward-Prowse recently admitted that he has been really impressed by Irving during pre-season.
He actually looked decent at times, and even scored a wonder goal during our win away at Dagenham back in July. However, if we’re all being honest here, he’s a long way off of the levels required to play Premier League football.
I am hugely surprised that Andy Irving remained at West Ham beyond the end of the summer transfer window.
A move back to Scotland or perhaps to his former club in Austria surely beckons for the 24-year-old at some point in the near future. He isn’t good enough to be at West Ham. I really hope he proves me wrong but I just can’t see it. The fact he’s still a Hammers player is a very big surprise indeed.
