Said Benrahma ‘demanded to leave’ West Ham United in January amid Lyon transfer interest
Said Benrahma is demanding to leave West Ham United in the January transfer window amid interest from Lyon, according to Fichajes.net.
The Algerian winger has found himself out of the starting lineup this season as David Moyes opts for a forward line including Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus instead.
And a lack of game time has seen interested parties make themselves known for Benrahma with talkSPORT reporting (24 December) that Lyon are interested, with Spanish outlet Fichajes reporting that the 26-year-old has “demanded to leave”, with West Ham “forced to sell” in the coming days.
Blow
One of the reasons that West Ham have been able to perform so well in recent months is because of the great depth they have in the squad.
Lots of sickness in recent weeks has seen a dip in form, but the likes of Benrahma have been able to come in and make an impact at times too.
The whole club and fan base knows how good Benrahma is on his day, that’s why they paid in excess of £20m to make his loan move permanent, but the squad has evolved to a point where we’re well stocked in his position and he’s no longer first-choice.
However he’s not fallen that far down the pecking order and one injury would likely see him go back into the side, which means Moyes and the Hammers board have a big decision to make about letting him go should an offer come in.
The team definitely need depth and quality running through the squad to keep competing in the second half of the season, but if Benrahma wants out then it’s probably the right thing to let him go and replace him adequately.
In other West Ham news, illness strikes as duo doubtful for Arsenal clash.