West Ham Zone View: Reported swoop for League One star could be perfect for the Hammers
West Ham United have struggled at centre back for a while now, and a lack of depth has been a significant part of the problem.
Angelo Ogbonna has emerged as the best centre half at the London Stadium, but Issa Diop and Fabian Balbuena have struggled in recent times.
The Frenchman is still extremely young and will doubtless improve as time goes on, but a new central defender would be ideal for the Hammers.
Winston Reid headed off to Major League Soccer on loan recently, and it would be a surprise if he featured for the east London outfit again.
So a new addition is needed for the Irons, and it appears the club are thinking the exact same thing.
That’s because The Sun reported on Saturday that the east London outfit have been taking a look at Gillingham’s young centre back Jack Tucker.
The club’s scouts have been blown away by the 20-year-old, with the League One outfit open to selling him at the end of the season.
Aston Villa are also admirers of the Gills star, but if the Hammers can stay up and Villa don’t then they obviously have the upper hand – although the reverse could easily also happen.
But for David Moyes, Tucker would be an ideal new option. He’s played 31 times this campaign, and has been a key part of Gillingham’s fantastic recent run.
There’s no guarantee that he could make the sizeable step up to the Premier League, but with Ogbonna, Diop and Balbuena in place he wouldn’t necessarily be relied upon to do so straight away.
However, if he did then he could come in and start alongside Ogbonna in a much-improved centre back partnership.
A new centre half is a big priority for the Irons come the summer transfer window, and Tucker sounds like the ideal new recruit.
In other West Ham news, the club are reportedly leading the race to sign a £20million-rated talent.