West Ham United midfielder Flynn Downes determined to fill Declan Rice void
West Ham United midfielder Flynn Downes is focused on replacing Declan Rice at the London Stadium despite Southampton holding an interest in the 24-year-old midfielder, according to the Athletic.
Downes was signed last summer from Russell Martin’s Swansea City and featured 35 times in his first season in East London, only starting seven Premier League matches leaving many to think he would opt for a temporary switch this season.
While Martin likely remains an admirer of Downes and there have been plenty of reports to suggest they will work together again, the Athletic’s Roshane Thomas says there haven’t been any concrete talks yet.
Reporting on all of the Hammers’ transfer business, Thomas touched on the position of Downes writing: “Southampton have not approached West Ham and Downes is determined to fill the void left by Rice.
However, David Moyes has previously said he doesn’t view Downes as a Rice replacement being quoted saying: “Flynn has done a good job and he’s progressing well, it can take time when you bring in boys from the Championship.
“We’ve trusted him, we’ve played him in a lot of big games and he’s done a good job. Is he a complete replacement for Declan Rice? I’m not sure about that.”
Managing expectations
It is naturally a given that whoever replaces Rice at the heart of the West Ham midfield is going to be compared to the £100m man, but the fact that Downes is seemingly revelling that challenge speaks not only of his talent but his self-belief in his own ability.
But the two are very different players, there’s a reason that Martin is so keen to bring him to Southampton where he will no doubt instil his possession-based style that is so reliant on ball retention. The same style drew enough attention to Downes to bring him to the London Stadium in the first place.
Naturally, he hasn’t quite got that disruptive defensive ability that allowed Rice to be so effective as a defensive midfielder, not particularly surprising when he stands at 5ft 6, compared to the now Arsenal man’s 6ft frame.
However, the initial purpose of signing Downes was never as a Rice replacement, it was with a view to him developing into a different midfield option. Moyes’ unwillingness to compare the two is as much to allow Downes to shape his own identity as it is to remind Southampton they value him in East London.
In other West Ham news, David Moyes is desperate to sign an England and Manchester United star