Just because West Ham United have spent millions on Niclas Fullkrug, Nayef Aguerd, Jean-Clair Todibo and Max Kilman with limited returns, that does not mean there is not value to be found for Premier League clubs in search of bargain buys.
Over recent years, Hammers fans have been forced to watch a seemingly never-ending conveyor belt of multi-million footballers stumble across the turf, making a mockery of their eye-watering price-tags with every anonymous display, poorly-defended cross and misplaced finish.
Hammers boss Graham Potter laid the blame at his £106 million centre-back trio of Aguerd, Todibo and Kilman when Sunderland scored two unchallenged headers on the opening weekend.
Tony Cottee, meanwhile, feels that £30 million James Ward-Prowse was emblematic of the club’s midfield issues in the opening weeks of the new campaign.
An issue West Ham United have just spent a further £55 million or so attempting to solve, via the additions of Mateus Fernandes and Soungoutou Magassa.
And, after freebie Callum Wilson overshadowed the £27 million Niclas Fullkrug at the City Ground last Sunday, Gabby Agbonlahor cannot help but wonder just what is going on in the London Stadium boardroom.
Photo by Alex Livesey – Danehouse/Getty ImagesGabby Agbonlahor says Morgan Rogers is the sort of bargain West Ham United are missing
While Agbonlahor’s beloved Aston Villa reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League with the likes of John McGinn, Youri Tielemans, Boubacar Kamara, Emi Martinez and Morgan Rogers, West Ham have drifted further and further away from the elite despite splurging over £350 million on new signings since their Conference League success in 2023.
Between them, McGinn, Tielemans, Kamara, Martinez and the outrageously talented Morgan Rogers – who scored a Champions League hat-trick against Celtic en route to the last-eight – cost Aston Villa a combined £28 million.
Just £1 million more than West Ham spent on a now-32-year-old Fullkrug last summer.
For Agbonlahor, the reason why Aston Villa went from strength to strength while West Ham slipped down the table can be explained partly by both club’s respective transfer activity. He uses Rogers, signed for an initial £8 million from second-tier Middlesbrough 20 months ago, as a prime example of the sort of value West Ham have frequently overlooked.
“Aston Villa got Morgan Rogers for [around] £10m. He’s probably worth £100 million now,” Agbonlahor tells talkSPORT. “You could sign someone for £80 million who is not as good as someone you sign for £10 million!
“It is about scouting, it is about who is making the decisions. Now, in football clubs, we are hearing managers don’t always have the last say on players.
“How can that work?”
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty ImagesAston Villa icon hails Malick Diouf, Mateus Fernandes and Callum Wilson deals
While a spokesman for West Ham’s board told Hammers News this week that Graham Potter had a major say in all of the summer additions, additions such as Callum Wilson, Kyle Walker-Peters and Igor Julio hardly smacked of ambition while the more expensive acquisitions at the London Stadium have frequently flattered to deceive.
Agbonlahor, though, does like the business done over recent months.
Mateus Fernandes and Malick Diouf showed signs of a very promising understanding down the left-hand side at Nottingham Forest. Callum Wilson opened his Hammers account off the bench, while Kyle Walker-Peters did a superb job stopping Callum Hudson-Odoi in his tracks.
“West Ham, they’ve spent money but haven’t always spent it wisely,” adds Agbonlahor.
“[But] I do like Diouf, the left-back they signed for [nearly] £20 million. Fernandes from Southampton is a very good player. I’m sure he’ll do well.
“And Callum Wilson; Free transfer, hasn’t cost you anything. He looked great at Forest, scored a great goal. You see his movement for the goal, he made eight, nine different movements to get away from the defender.”