West Ham: Hammers make approach for defender
David Moyes could yet welcome another reinforcement…
Ahead of the Premier League season, there may have been some concern about how West Ham United would cope without Declan Rice, who completed a reported £105m move to Arsenal in the summer. However, the Hammers have since got off to an incredible start, however.
In their opening three Premier League games, David Moyes’ side have drawn against Bournemouth and defeated both Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion 3-1 to remain unbeaten.
They have brought in a number of new players, using the funds they received for Rice, and now they have reportedly made an approach to add yet another reinforcement.
What’s the latest West Ham United transfer news?
West Ham have welcomed four fresh faces this summer, including both James Ward-Prowse and Mohammed Kudus. Kudus, having only recently signed for the Hammers, is yet to make his debut, but after scoring 18 goals and assisting a further seven for Ajax last season, it may come as little surprise if he got off to a blistering start at the London Stadium.
Having landed targets who are capable of making an instant difference, it now seems as though West Ham are turning their attention towards the future.
According to Sky Sports’ James Savundra, the London club have made an initial approach to sign Peterborough United defender Ronnie Edwards before the transfer window slams shut in a matter of days, although the player has been tracked by a host of Premier League clubs.
The 20-year-old has become a key player for the League One side, starting six of their seven games so far this season. With that said, West Ham’s approach may need to be a convincing one, if Peterborough are to sell their young defender in the coming days.
How good is Ronnie Edwards?
Signing a 20-year-old centre-back who already has almost 100 first-team appearances to his name could represent a piece of incredibly shrewd business for those at West Ham in the final days of the window.
The only way appears to be up for Edwards, given how quickly he has become a key part of the set-up at Peterborough, and he now holds a career-high Transfermarkt valuation.
Last season, the 20-year-old, of course, suffered the ultimate play-off heartbreak, when Peterborough were on the other side of Sheffield Wednesday’s incredible comeback from 4-0 down on aggregate to eventually win on penalties.
Edwards started both games, and has since shown a strong character to bounce back at such a young age, and keep his place under Darren Ferguson.
Throughout what is still a young career, he has earned plenty of deserved praise, too, including from Peterborough director Barry Fry, who said, via Football Transfers:
“Ronnie is a Rolls Royce. We knew that when we signed him.
“I used to watch a lot of under 18s football at Barnet as well as Posh and I told the gaffer about him. And when we brought him in for a game Darren watched him for 20 minutes and told me to sign him.
“Spurs were watching him at the time and Brentford were very keen on him. In fact Brentford were so upset when we did the deal they complained to the FA!”
