West Ham have been on a roll this season, currently sitting in fourth place in the league which is a fantastic start to the season so far for the Irons. After a quiet transfer window fans were starting to question whether their squad would be strong enough to continue with their outstanding form from last season and have the depth to also compete in Europe.
Winner
But the tides seem to change when David Moyes set his sights on Champions league winner, Kurt Zouma. The Frenchman netted five goals for Chelsea last season in 24 appearances, making it his highest scoring season in his career so far. The defender also netted more goals than his French compatriot, Anthony Martial. The striker only scored four goals in 22 appearances.
Missing Piece?
The signing made sense for both parties involved, with the Hammers missing that defensive colossus at the back and they did not have enough cover to bring off the bench if one of their starters got injured. Chelsea were also looking to sign Frenchman Jules Kounde from Sevilla, which meant there was no room for Zouma in the squad.
But did Chelsea make a mistake letting the 27-year-old Frenchman leave to potentially now top-four contenders for the league, after being unsuccessful in their pursuit of Kounde?
Stellar Performances
The centre back’s £25 million arrival from Chelsea at the end of the summer transfer window made West Ham look much stronger at the back. With Zouma making the defence look more solid with his physical presence on the field, the defender has continued his goal-scoring acumen in their historic 3-2 victory against Liverpool last month, scoring a sublime header past Allison making the score 3-1, which has made for an even tougher title race in the league this season.
The Frenchman had seemed to form a great partnership with Angelo Ogbonna, before he was ruled injured as the pair kept three clean sheets in a row in all competitions in October. Zouma seems to be enjoying his time at the London Stadium as in an interview after the 3-2 win against Liverpool he said. “This is what I came here for, to try to help the team going up. They had a top season last year and we keep on improving. We’ve got top players in the team and it’s like a family here”.
Notable Signings
Even though it’s obvious what Zouma has brought to this reformed West Ham side, let us look at the other ‘Top signings’ within the league.
Manchester United fans were brought to tears when Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the greatest player of this generation, made his triumphant return to Old Trafford in September. But the living legend hasn’t been able to sort out the defensive problems at the back and has been questioned on whether he actually fits in this current United set up. However, he has scored six goals this season with two of them being a brace against Arsenal in a 3-2-win last night at home.
Romelu Lukaku also made his return to Chelsea this season but hasn’t been able to replicate his Inter Milan success in the Premier League. The striker was looking strong at the beginning of the season especially in their 2-0 win against Arsenal, bullying Pablo Mari to score his first goal since his return to the Blues. Since then, he has been questioned on whether he’s ruining the fluidity of Chelsea’s play.
‘Cat-like’
Other signings are worth a mention like the rejuvenation of Arsenal’s back line with Ben White and the outstanding Aaron Ramsdale, who has surprised many fans on just how great a goalkeeper he is. In his fantastic performances using his cat-like agility to perform picture perfect saves. If the Englishman can continue his form in goal and surprisingly lead the Gunners to European competition next season, he would certainly be in the conversation for best signing this season.
All these signings were decent but none of them compare to the happy man in West Ham’s line, who’s helping turning this side into title challengers. If Kurt Zouma can continue his form and maybe help the team to see silverware this season the question of signing of the season would automatically be answered with: KURT ZOUMA.
