To say that this season has unravelled extra dramatically than anybody might have imagined for West Ham United can be a colossal understatement.
It was all the time going to be a difficult marketing campaign for the East Londoners, however few would have anticipated them to be 18th within the Premier League, seven factors from security with simply seven video games to play.
As if that wasn’t sufficient, midfield maestro Lucas Paqueta is attempting to leap ship, making Nuno Espírito Santo’s extremely difficult job a bit tougher.
What the supervisor wants is an actual chief in his facet, somebody just like the legendary Mark Noble, and because it occurs, it feels like West Ham are focusing on simply such a participant.
West Ham goal their new Noble
Given their precarious place within the Premier League, this switch window has been an unsurprisingly hectic one for West Ham United.
On the one hand, the Hammers have introduced in two strikers: former Lazio man Taty Castellanos and former Gil Vicente star Pablo Felipe.
Nonetheless, it additionally now appears doubtless that they will even lastly lose midfield magician Paqueta, who has seemingly made it his mission to desert the facet and head again to Brazil earlier than the window shuts.
With all of this in thoughts, it is clear that the membership want a stabilising presence within the facet, a Noble-like determine, and it appears like they’ve recognized a participant who might be simply that.
No less than, that’s in line with a latest report from journalist Ben Jacobs, who claims West Ham are focused on Dan Neil.
In actual fact, Jacobs has revealed that, alongside the likes of Coventry, Sheffield United and Rangers, the Hammer have made contact with Sunderland and enquired in regards to the 24-year-old.
It isn’t clear how a lot he might price, however together with his £15k-per-week contract coming to an finish in the summertime, it absolutely would not be an excessive amount of.
In all, whereas it may not be essentially the most thrilling signing, West Ham can be clever to signal Neil, particularly as he might be Nuno’s personal Noble.
Why Neil might be Nuno’s Noble
Now, the elephant within the room is that Neil has barely featured for Sunderland this season, taking part in simply 103 minutes of first-team soccer.
Nonetheless, whereas that does not sound nice on the floor, it is essential to do not forget that the Black Cats signed some unimaginable gamers in the summertime, and it was Bundesliga winner Granit Xhaka who changed him on the base of midfield.
In different phrases, simply because he is not on the stage to displace somebody many would take into account probably the greatest signings this season, it doesn’t imply he could not do a superb job serving to West Ham stave off relegation.
With that mentioned, what about him means he might develop right into a Noble-like determine for Nuno?
Nicely, there are just a few obvious similarities, reminiscent of their positions and nationalities, however the large ones are their personalities and management expertise.
Take the previous Hammers legend: positive, he may not have been the flashiest or most technical of gamers, however he was a genuinely wonderful captain and stabilising power in his staff.
The very same might and was mentioned in regards to the Sunderland star previous to this season.
For instance, final season he made 48 appearances throughout all competitions, all of which had been begins and all of which he wore the captain’s armband for.
The 24-year-old was the beating coronary heart of the staff’s midfield and helped information them to the Championship Play-Offs, the place they beat Coventry Metropolis within the semi-finals after which Sheffield United within the closing.
Unsurprisingly, he is a well-liked determine within the dressing room, and halfway via their promotion marketing campaign final season, teammate Harrison Jones referred to as him a “correct chief.”
In the end, it is not an thrilling or glamorous signing, however West Ham don’t want that; they want a gentle and reliable participant in the midst of the park, somebody like Noble, and that’s what Neil might be.