They often say ‘never go back’. But, this time, it is the Southampton fans rather than James Ward-Prowse himself attempting to close the door on an emotional homecoming for the West Ham United midfielder.
Midfielder turned misfit, perhaps.
In the space of one Saturday in late September, James Ward-Prowse appeared to go from first-choice to fourth or fifth in the blinking of an eye at West Ham United.
Nuno Espirito Santo is still keeping the door ajar for a man whose loan spell at Nottingham Forest he agreed to terminate just last season. Injuries, suspensions, and a difficult fixture list could bring about a return to contention.
But the fact that Ward-Prowse was dropped from the West Ham squad in its entirety at Everton spoke volumes about the dramatic difference in stance between Graham Potter and his London Stadium successor.
Give Me Sport certainly seem to believe that there is no way back for the £30 million England international in claret and blue. Speaking of ‘a way back’, could his beloved Southampton be the ones to rescue Ward-Prowse from his sudden purgatory?
Photo by Michael Reaves – Premier League/Getty Images for Premier LeagueSouthampton fans react to potential James Ward-Prowse return from West Ham United
Hammers News can confirm that West Ham hope Southampton will be tempted into bringing Ward-Prowse back to the club he captained before that 2023 departure.
Saints coach Will Still, a West Ham fan himself, is understood to be keen on the idea of bringing more top-flight experience to a side looking to escape the Championship at the first time of asking.
There is an acceptance that West Ham will not recoup anywhere near the £30 million fee they paid just two years ago. It is the reported £115,000-a-week wages, though, which have Southampton supporters drawing a line under Ward-Prowse’s St Mary’s legacy.
After reportedly cutting their wage bill by £40 million following relegation in May, per the Swiss Ramble, bringing back an ageing, declining former player on big money would feel like a backwards step.
“Why though?!,” one fan wrote on X when the prospect of a Ward-Prowse homecoming was brought up. “The squad is big enough already and not to mention his huge wage! We need progress, not sentiment.”
“Give me strength. I highly doubt it, thankfully. Wherever he goes, he’s going to have to make a massive climb down on his wages. Absolutely no one is paying him anywhere near £115,000 a week.”
“His wages will be too much. Not a chance [owners] Sport Republic sanction it for a 30-year-old.”
“Can’t see it. He’d only be on the bench most weeks. I think [Shea] Charles and [Caspar] Jander are the starters. Then it would be JWP. Doubt it will happen though. Wages too big.”
“A club legend who served us well. But this is lazy. We could never afford half of his wages.”
“We built a team around him that catastrophically failed. Let’s not do that again.”
“Never go back. Not good enough to get in the team now.”
Nuno Espirito Santo spoke about Ward-Prowse in pre-Arsenal press conference
‘Never go back’. The phrase which often, and justifiably, appears whenever a heroic former player is linked with a stunning return to the club where he performed at his peak.
See Cristiano Ronaldo, Robbie Fowler, Kaka and Andriy Shevchenko. In slightly different circumstances, Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku.
West Ham will have one more training session before taking on Arsenal on Saturday. While confirming that Jean-Clair Todibo and Aaron Wan-Bissaka could make their returns, Nuno stopped short of ruling out a Hammers revival for Ward-Prowse, as unlikely as it may seem.
“We are trying to [get to] know the players as soon as possible, as best as we can,” Nuno explains. “So we can make the proper solutions and decisions.
“James wasn’t involved [at Everton]. Let’s see [if he returns at Arsenal]. We have one more training session.
“We always have the same mindset; What the team needs. It’s going to be a long season. It’s too early to say what we expect. We need the squad strong and healthy.”