Harry Redknapp hails West Ham ace Craig Dawson as PL signing of the season
The impact of Craig Dawson on this West Ham side has been nothing short of sensational and Harry Redknapp has put his name in the ring for a prestigious honour.
Dawson joined on a season-long loan from Watford in October and had to bide his time before making himself a first-team fixture.
But he has not looked back ever since and has helped to establish the Irons as sure-fire European contenders with the promised land of the Champions League in touching distance.
Former Irons boss Rednkapp has waxed lyrical about Dawson, telling The Sun: “When it comes to the signing of the season he’s (David Moyes) in a league of his own.
“Actually, he’d have a decent shout of making it a clean sweep with numbers two and three as well, because Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal have both been sensational.
“But in my opinion, not even those two — outstanding as they have been — can top the impact Craig Dawson has already had in his short time with the club.”
He added: “He’s one of the first names Moyesie puts on his teamsheet now.
“He’s what I’d call a proper lad, a great competitor, just a top centre-back. As a manager, you always have those players you know you can rely on.”
Dawson is our defensive demon
We’re with you Harry – Dawson has been an utter colossus since asserting himself in this Irons side.
It makes it all the more remarkable that he went so long without playing after not making his debut until December 29 on the 16th Premier League matchday.
That leads us to think…where would we be if he was in the starting XI from the beginning of the season?
We’re currently in fifth position so it is hard to have too many complaints but the transformative effect Dawson has had on the defence does suggest he could have stopped the leaky nature at which we shipped goals in the first third of the season.
The two games prior to his December debut at Southampton saw the team concede five times and proved to be the final straw for Moyes before he elected to place his faith in the 30-year-old.
If Dawson had been performing at this level throughout the duration of the season we might have seen the unlikeliest of title charges.
His influence really cannot be underestimated and he proved his worth yet again on Monday evening when he coped admirably without usual centre-back partner Angelo Ogbonna and guided the Irons to another clean sheet.
At West Ham Zone we are more than happy to get on board with Rednkapp and rank Dawson as the number one signing of the season.
In other West Ham news, Moyes has one demand before signing a new deal at the London Stadium.