Nayef Aguerd may have had his head turned as West Ham United performances dip
Nayef Aguerd was the subject of plenty of transfer speculation during the summer window, and his recent performances for West Ham may be a result of his head being turned.
There were links with a move back to his former club Rennes in France during the summer [Foot Mercato, 21 August], which quickly faded, but late reports suggested he had given his approval to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad [Salem Al Kulaib, 1 September].
Ultimately, the Hammers were steadfast in their decision to keep Aguerd at the club, but his performances so far this season may be a result of his head having been turned by the speculation.
GOAL SA claimed in the summer that Aguerd had an offer of a £164,000 weekly wage from an unnamed Saudi Arabian side, likely Al-Ittihad as the previous report had claimed, and that type of money is typically hard to turn down.
Having stayed at the club, his performances have taken a real dip from last season. His most recent display against Newcastle brought attention to his shortcomings.
The defender gave the ball away 13 times, had a pass completion percentage of just 63%, and failed to block a single shot or make a single tackle or interception. Questions about his continued starting role in the team will have to be asked. [Sofascore]
Aguerd’s performance against Liverpool at Anfield was equally poor, giving the ball away ten times, having just a 73% passing accuracy, and giving away a penalty. [Sofascore]
Alan Shearer slammed the defender’s “poor” performance against Manchester City as the Hammers were overturned 3-1 at home live on Match Of The Day [17 September], as his recent displays have caught the attention of those outside of West Ham.
Konstantinos Mavropanos was brought in to provide competition and cover for both Aguerd and Kurt Zouma in the defence, and will now be hoping to find his place in the first team as a result of the Algerian’s poor displays.
Hopefully, this changes soon.
