West Ham are in the market for defenders this summer if the price is right and they could be tempted to go back in for a former January transfer target.
Back at the turn of the year, David Moyes made his move to sign Nottingham Forest defender Matty Cash, with reports claiming the Hammers submitted a bid of between £10million and £12million to the Championship club.
That was rejected by Forest, who were chasing a play-off place at the end of the season which they looked likely to achieve but completely collapsed in their last two matches and missed out on the top six in dramatic fashion.
Sabri Lamouchi’s side needed just a point from their final two games to secure a spot but lost both of their final matches 4-1 and Swansea City took the last play-off place.
Had Forest potentially made their way up to the top flight through the play-offs then the prospect of signing Cash would have been slim but now, the Hammers could have the chance one again.
Back in January, Cash said he was aware of interest from the Hammers, saying: “My agent had a few chats with me. There were a few conversations but I had a job to do at the time and a few games to focus on. But I heard about the interest, yeah.”
West Ham face competition for Cash this summer, with The Telegraph reporting that Sheffield United have already started the bidding war with a £10million offer that has been rejected by Forest.
The 22-year-old has had another stellar campaign at the City Ground that has enhanced his reputation further. He made 42 appearances across the season, scored three goals and assisted five more for Forest, averaging 2.6 tackles and 1.4 interceptions per game according to stats compiled by Whoscored.
Cash certainly fits the profile of player Moyes is looking to bring to the club as the manager is looking to recruit young talent from the Championship in the hope he can dig up another Jarrod Bowen, who enjoyed an excellent end to the season following his move from Hull City in January.
Moyes has lost two right backs this season with Pablo Zabaleta and Jeremy Ngakia both departing at the end of their contracts. Ryan Fredericks has failed to convince across the last two seasons since moving from Fulham though Ben Johnson did emerge at the end of the season as a solid performer at Premier League level.
Football.London understands that Moyes is targeting the defence as a key area to strengthen this summer having shipped 62 goals last season. He has been linked with a swoop for Cash again as well as QPR’s Ryan Manning, Wigan’s Antonee Robinson and River Plate’s Gonzalo Montiel.
Former Hammers defender Ngakia looks set to join Watford despite their relegation to the Championship having rejected an improved, bumper pay day from the Hammers back in June as he saw his future elsewhere.
