Julen Lopetegui appears to be closing in on a move to bring Max Kilman to West Ham United this summer.
West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui is set to oversee a very big squad overhaul at West Ham, with numerous new signings and outgoings expected.
The Spaniard has already brought Luis Guilherme and Wes Foderingham to the London Stadium, and Wolves skipper Kilman will be next.
The Hammers boss is believed to want six new signings at the very least this summer, but I think he needs more like eight…as an absolute bare minimum.
Lopetegui still needs to sign a top-class striker, a defensive midfielder, a left winger, a couple of full-backs and if I’m being picky, another centre-back after the Kilman deal is done.
However, the big problem that he faces is that he has a transfer budget of just £90 million this summer, excluding player sales.
And with that in mind, the former Wolves boss may well have to sacrifice one of the club’s big money signings…
Julen Lopetegui may have to sacrifice one £30m West Ham player
The Spaniard needs to raise some proper funds this summer, by selling at least one key player.
The initial plan was obviously to sell Lucas Paqueta to Manchester City, but the Brazilian being charged for alleged betting offences seems to have scuppered that transfer, for now at least.
So now Lopetegui will have to shift his focus to another player who will be able to draw in a decent fee.
According to Hammers insider Sean Whetstone, Lopetegui will have to sacrifice one out of either Kurt Zouma or Nayef Aguerd, if he wants to bring in another centre-back after the signing of Kilman is completed.
Zouma was signed from Chelsea in 2021 for around £30 million (Daily Mail), whilst Aguerd joined West Ham for the same fee a year later (Sky Sports).
The 29-year-old Frenchman was brilliant for us during his first two years with the club, but he regressed badly last season, certainly from a physical perspective.
Meanwhile, Aguerd, 28, has looked miles off the levels required for Premier League football at times. He doesn’t have the physical capabilities needed to succeed in England’s top flight, and he needs to be moved on as a matter of urgency in my opinion.
In fact, I think West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui should be looking to sell Zouma AND Aguerd this summer.
Kilman will be a big upgrade on Zouma, and Lopetegui now needs to bring in an improvement on Aguerd as well.
Nehuen Perez would be a great option for us, as would Hull City’s Jacob Greaves. Whether Lopetegui is able to raise the funds required to sign either of those two in addition to Kilman remains to be seen though.
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