Waking up to the rumours that Chelsea were eying a shock January swoop for Diafra Sakho and Enner Valencia initially had me chuckling in to my coffee.
Then I read that, should Chelsea make their interest concrete by bidding some actual money for them before Monday night’s deadline, they’d be kind enough to chuck Loic Remy in for good measure. Hmm.
Then, when I’m reminded that Loic Remy wouldn’t be able to play for us until the summer because he’s already turned out for two clubs this season, I’m wondering where the logic is behind such a preposterous sounding transfer.
And once I’ve then read that we’ve offered Swansea £8million for Bafetimbi Gomis to help fill the void left by our two departed strikers and an ineligible Remy, I’m now wondering whether I’m still asleep or not. Surely I must be dreaming this?
Chelsea’s interest in Juan Cuadrado was the initial catalyst to the aforementioned transfer fairytale – if you can call it that. If that deal was to fall through, who could they ‘realistically’ attempt to sign as an identical alternative?
Sakho and Valencia have the potential to play at that level, though that’s not the issue here. Since when was Chelsea’s transfer policy built upon signing players ‘with potential?’ They buy players for their established world class ability. Just look at Diego Costa, Cesc Fabregas, Felipe Luis, etc. And anyway, at what point do the likes of Sakho and Valencia start keeping Diego Costa out of the Chelsea side? Never.
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Valencia is still adapting to life in England, as well as still getting used to the rigours of football in Europe, let alone the Premier League. Sakho, despite his fantastic start to his West Ham career, is only six months in to life outside the French equivalent to the Championship. Mourinho doesn’t take risks like that. Well, not often anyway.
Moving on to our apparent interest in Gomis and you wonder where on earth a player like him would fit in to a team that is heavily built around an Andy Carroll who cost us north of £15million. Carroll has adapted his game to fit nicely in to Allardyce’s new-found attacking shape. And with Gomis wanting to leave Swansea because of a lack of game time, why would he agree to sign for us when he’ll be playing second fiddle to Carroll. It just doesn’t ring true.
Finally, and more importantly, why on earth would the owners sanction such transfer business. Sakho and Valencia were bought in the summer to help Allardyce deliver the promise of a more attractive style of football, and they have delivered just that.
They have been crucial to our rise up the Premier League table, to our spell in the top four over Christmas, to our chances of reaching the FA Cup final, and to the beginning of what we all believe is a journey towards a permanent residence in the Premier League’s elite, as well as regular silverware in our new home at the Olympic Stadium.
So what good would it do to our aspirations to just throw that all away because Chelsea might miss out on signing some Colombian geezer over in Italy?
That’s what I find most insulting. West Ham are no longer the club it was 12 months ago. Our summer transfer business and success on the pith thus far are clearly the early foundations to our future intentions. Intentions of doing exactly what Chelsea are doing at the moment.
Forgive me if you think I’m blowing this out of proportion, but this is the first season in a long, long time that we can all sit here and admit we’re absolutely delighted with everything and are truly exciting for what the future holds.
