McAvennie tips West Ham defender Reid to shine on loan at Brentford – Exclusive
We’re delighted to welcome former West Ham United striker Frank McAvennie as our exclusive columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at the London Stadium…
Frank McAvennie has wished his best to Winston Reid after the West Ham defender joined Brentford on loan on deadline day. However, the ex-Irons striker doesn’t believe the Kiwi centre-half will be able to make it back into the squad in East London.
Reid, 32, spent 2020 on loan at Sporting Kansas City but earned just 10 MLS appearances and played a further two times in the play-offs. According to the Kansas City Star, the Missouri outfit opted against signing the centre-back permanently from West Ham, with his £70,000-a-week wages potentially an issue.
Reid joined Brentford on loan on February 1 and has since made two appearances for the second-placed Championship club by coming off the bench in the late stages of wins over Bristol City and Middlesbrough.
While McAvennie believes Reid is still good enough for the Championship, he has reservations about whether he can cut it in the Premier League any more.
“I don’t think he’ll get back [into the squad],” McAvennie told West Ham Zone.
“At that age, I think he could play in the Championship quite easily and if he’s still getting paid by West Ham anyway, it’s not a problem.
“He’ll do well in the Championship but the Premier League is so hard now. It may not look pretty but when you make a mistake, it’s a goal. Strikers at some of the clubs will punish you so it would be hard for Winston Reid to come back in.
“In his prime, he was alright but good luck to him at Brentford.”
Reid has a big chance to show his worth while on loan at Brentford.
The former Midtjylland centre-back has another two and a half years remaining on his £70,000-a-week contract at the London Stadium so his loan switch to the Championship club could help David Moyes decide whether or not he’s worth keeping past the end of this season.
Reid will be 33-years-old before next season starts and still have two years left on a big-money contract. He’s also had injury issues and struggled to play week in, week out in the MLS with Kansas City.
It’s starting to look like a wrong decision to offer him such a long, big-money contract but hopefully, the New Zealand international can show his worth at Brentford and maybe prove some of the doubters wrong.
In other West Ham news, Moyes was proud of his players despite their defeat to Man United in the FA Cup.