West Ham United midfielder Ossama Ashley on Burton Albion radar
Burton Albion have turned their attention to West Ham United in the hope of signing Under-23 midfielder Ossama Ashley, according to Football League World.
The 22-year-old has only played 40 minutes of football this season in two matches [Transfer Markt] having suffered badly with injuries during his time at Rush Green after his 2020 move from AFC Wimbledon.
He’s played just one game of senior football in his career so far, minus the eight minutes he got in the Papa John’s Trophy against Colchester United, which came while on loan at local non-league side Billericay Town.
The Brewers have previously signed a player from West Ham and that man is still at the Pirelli Stadium. Joe Powell left the Hammers as Ashley arrived to get first-team football and he’s played more than 50 times for the club since that switch.
Ashley’s initial contract was a one-year deal with an option to extend further which the Irons have taken but this summer sees that agreement come to an end with no new deal on the horizon.
Nowhere near
Some players who leave the club before making their senior debuts could be aggrieved that they got so close to that breakthrough but never managed to jump that final yard, not in this case.
Ashley has been heavily plagued by injuries ever since he joined the club two years ago and as a result, he has never been able to get a good run of games going for us to truly see what he might be capable of.
With Mark Noble retiring and Alex Kral heading back to Spartak Moscow after a disappointing loan spell, David Moyes is likely to be looking for midfield players and Ashley could have been the man to step in had he stayed fit.
Instead, Conor Coventry looks the most likely to be promoted to the first team and it would be a big shock if Ashley got a contract offer at all let alone the promotion to the senior setup.
He’s never really got close to troubling the squad for rotated, throwaway cup matches let alone a Premier League side so his departure won’t be one that is felt by any Irons fans.
In other West Ham news, the Premier League spend per point statistics make Moyes look like a miracle worker.
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