Despite reports in The Mirror claiming West Ham have agreed personal terms of Villarreal’s Arnaut Danjuma, Daily Express journalist Ryan Taylor is adamant a deal is not close, nor will it ever be.
The Hammers have been linked with the former Bournemouth winger over the last couple of weeks, with 90min claiming he could be available for around €40m this summer.
It was recently claimed that while a transfer fee was yet to be agreed between the two clubs, Danjuma had already agreed on personal terms with the Hammers and wanted to secure a move back to the Premier League.
But Taylor isn’t having it, claiming there is no truth in reports of personal teams being agreed. He tweeted that it was actually his understanding that a deal was “totally off the cards.”
The journalist goes on to explain that reports on the Netherlands international’s temperament have not gone down well inside West Ham.
So as things stand, it appears no one really knows what’s going on with this deal. Some reports are claiming it’s just a case of a transfer fee being agreed, others are saying West Ham don’t want to sign him because of his temperament.
No truth in claims Arnaut Danjuma has agreed personal terms with West Ham. In fact, my understanding is deal is totally off the cards. Not happening. Reports regarding player’s ‘temperament’ have not gone down well. #WHUFC
— Ryan Taylor (@RyanTaylorSport) July 3, 2022
The latter point is certainly believable, though. It’s well-known that Moyes takes squad harmony very seriously and will only sign players who he thinks will fit perfectly into the squad, not just in terms of his playing style but also when it comes to teamwork, attitude and ambition.
If Danjuma does indeed have a temperament issue, then he would not be a great fit and would potentially disrupt the brilliant atmosphere within the changing room, which Moyes has worked so hard to get right since his return to the club.
But there is no evidence of that from Danjuma so it would be unfair to make a concrete judgement on his character and whether or not that’s the reason behind a deal collapsing – if that’s even the case.
It does seem like this is a story that could rumble on for a while yet as Moyes continues to bring in much-needed squad depth across several areas of his squad.
