Exclusive: West Ham United register interest in signing ex-Arsenal midfielder this summer as David Moyes looks to prepare for Declan Rice departure
In a recent report, The Athletic stated that West Ham United are showing interest in Olympique Marseille midfielder Matteo Guendouzi. It has been claimed that the Hammers have identified the French talent as an option to replace Declan Rice, who could leave at the end of this season.
Guendouzi is having a solid campaign at Marseille as he has produced a handful of dominant performances at the centre of their midfield. The 24-year-old has found the back of the net five times and earned five assists in 40 matches for the French club this season in all competitions.
The French talent has anchored the midfield well by averaging 1.1 shots, 0.7 interceptions and 0.5 clearances per 90 minutes in Ligue 1.
He has even been tidy when distributing possession from midfield after completing 88.2% of his attempted passes in the French top tier (stats via whoscored).
Guendouzi is under contract at the French club until the summer of 2025. Therefore, West Ham will have to make a sizable offer if they want to get him on board during the summer transfer window.
Guendouzi is a tough-tackling midfielder who can sense the danger quickly to earn possession back for his team at the centre of the park. He doesn’t mind putting his foot through the ball when needed and is a tidy passer of the ball as well.
The French talent has a knack for scoring some important goals for his team and can also create some inviting chances for others around him in the opponent’s half.
Guendouzi knows the Premier League well from his time at Arsenal. Hence, he won’t take much time settling into life at the London Stadium if David Moyes can snap him up this summer. However, he is simply not good enough to fill the shoes of Declan Rice at the East London club.
We can expect Guendouzi to bring more bite and steel to West Ham‘s midfield department. Plus, he is good enough to increase competition for places within Moyes’ match-day squad. All in all, Guendouzi will be a solid choice for the Hammers to consider in this off-season.
