David Moyes urges caution ahead of ‘difficult’ transfer window for West Ham

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Jack Rosser @JackRosser_30 December 2021

David Moyes has warned West Ham fans not to expect any quick movement in the January window and says the club are "probably not" prepared for incomings, despite the need for defensive reinforcements.

The Hammers have been without Angelo Ogbonna and Kurt Zouma for almost a month now and the loss of two key figures has hit the side hard.

Moyes wants to invest at the back next month, with the window opening on January 1, with Liverpool’s Nathaniel Phillips a target and Bournemouth’s Lloyd Kelly having been linked.

However, the Scot says January appears to be shaping up to be a difficult window and has cooled expectations over what could be achieved early on.

Asked whether he felt the club were ready to act when the window opens this weekend, Moyes said: "I’d love to say yes. Do we want to act? Yes we do. Are we ready to act? Probably not.

"That is not to do with resources but it’s to do with availability, generally it looks like a difficult market. We say that every year but it feels that way.

"All I would say is that our last few January windows have seen us get [Tomas] Soucek, [Jarrod] Bowen and Jesse Lingard so if I could get anybody that would give us that level of success during the January window it would be seen as a positive."

Moyes has proved a handy operator in the transfer market since his return to West Ham, with those January additions mentioned impressing as well as Vladimir Coufal and Zouma.

However, Moyes has laid out the task at hand over the coming month.

"The answer to that is no," the Scot said when asked if West Ham were clear on who they were targeting. "Because there might be people who you want to target but the other clubs don’t want to sell them. I’ve got a player in mind who we would like but the club said they wouldn’t sell in January so you’ve got to wait until the summer.

"That is why I see a bit more of that in this window than I’ve seen before. You don’t get the feeling that there are clubs who are desperate for the money as they were this time last year where they needed the money to see them through.

"I don’t see that that desperation is out there so maybe you need to pay over the odds or they are not available. I’d love to be more upbeat but I am being honest and telling you how I see the window. I hope to add but I couldn’t guarantee it."

Hoping to add but not offering any guarantees has been Moyes’ modus operandi when it comes to transfers since his return, keen not to waste money on dud signings as West Ham have done in the past.

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"I don’t want us to be a club that throws money at it because I don’t really think that’s the way," said Moyes.

"I’ve said right from the start if football was only about money it would be no good, and I hope it’s not that way, because we have to have young players who come up through the Championship. If everyone could go buying the best players in the world, I don’t really see that. Some teams might do that."

Moyes added: "I don’t think West Ham will do it that way. We have made big strides. The job now is to see if we can keep up with the Jones’. I am there, scouting around to see what players we can get to make a difference.

"Can we get the equivalent of Jesse Lingard or a Tomas Soucek, who came in and made such a difference? Can we get those players who can continually make a difference?

"At the level where we are, it is very difficult, unless you are talking about the real top players. We need to keep things right and get players we know can contribute to the team and help us by being team players."

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