West Ham United could be set for mass exodus as contract situation emerges for first-team players
The West Ham summer transfer window was an odd one, with a lot of rumours but only two senior first-team exits and four arrivals actually taking place.
Edson Alvarez, James Ward-Prowse, Dinos Mavropanos and Mohammed Kudus were brought in to replace the outgoing Declan Rice and Gianluca Scamacca, with exit-linked stars such as Michail Antonio and Aaron Cresswell staying put beyond the transfer deadline.
A fantastic start to the season has seen David Moyes’s side claim 10 points from a possible 12, and everything at the London Stadium is rosy.
But with the transfer window now closed and the club turning their attentions to the future, there are some big decisions that need to be made for the club when it comes to contracts.
Tomas Soucek is said to have signed a new four-year deal with the club although there has been no official announcement yet, while Vladimir Coufal’s triggered extension means the club have the option to extend his deal by another year until 2025 like Pablo Fornals.
But outside of those three, there are seven first-team players who find themselves set to be out of contract come next summer which could lead to quite the exodus in January if things aren’t addressed between now and then.
Antonio is the main one who stands out, with a move expected before it never came to fruition. He has started the season incredibly well and is the first-choice striker, but Moyes was keen to bring in a new forward and with the Jamaica international well in this 30’s now a move could make sense if a new deal can’t be agreed.
Cresswell is another who will be expected to leave in the summer considering interest from the likes of Wolves in the summer, and since West Ham were willing to let him go you’d expect they won’t stand in his way again.
Lukasz Fabianski has lost his place as the number one so unless he wins it back at some point you can expect he’ll want to move on, while Conor Coventry’s lack of first-team exposure means he’s unlikely to stick around.
Ben Johnson and Angelo Ogbonna are also not first-team regulars so could move on without some assurances, while youngster Divin Mubama could look for football elsewhere if a new striker arrives or Antonio ends up sticking around.
If West Ham are to opt to part ways with these guys and earn some cash in the process, then it would mean a lot of business getting done in January and a lot of decisions being made between now and then to plan for replacements.
In other West Ham news, club chairman confirms Hammers bid for English defender this summer with January exit mooted.