Who is the man Big Sam wants to bring to West Ham?

Who are ya?

Cheikou Kouyate is a 24-year-old central defender who plays for Belgium club side Anderlecht, where he has been a regular for a number of years now – despite his youthful age. He is also a full international with his native Senegal, representing the African country during the 2012 Olympic games.

Born in Senegal, Kouyate was originally picked up by Belgium side Brussels at the age of 16, before moving to Anderlecht on a free transfer in 2008 at the tender age of 19. After a period on loan to K.V Kortrijk, he has been a first-team player for Anderlecht since 2009. Kouyate can also play in central midfield, making him quite a versatile player.

Big Sam, spend some money!

If unconfirmed reports are to be believed, the Hammers have agreed a fee with Anderlecht in the region of £7.5 million. If the deal goes through at this value, it would mean a significant proportion out of Sam Allardyce’s transfer kitty would be spent on the 24-year-old.

This should be a worthwhile investment, however, with Kouyate reportedly highly-rated and apparently watched by many scouts of top European teams for a few years now. Indeed it would appear that West Ham will have beaten off competition with some top Spanish clubs for his signature should the deal go ahead this window. At such a young age, too, it is highly probable that Kouyate’s resale value will only go up.

Believability factor

As I write this, rumours are abound that Kouyate has arrived in London to finalise terms and complete his medical for West Ham, so it would seem highly probably that the transfer will take place at this stage. Also, at the weekend, co-chairman David Sullivan told the clubs website;

“I believe we are very close to putting the finishing touches on a transfer that will excite us all.

“Should we land this player, we would have had to beat off competition from some of Europe’s top sides, and for me that shows the direction we are taking as a Club right now.”

All of the clues in this quote would lead you to suspect that Sullivan is talking about Kouyate, which provides further evidence that this transfer is close to completion. However, as all football supporters know, nothing can be taken for granted until an official confirmation is made.

Game changer?

Kouyate does sound like a real exciting prospect on the face of it, and someone who can improve both the team and squad at West Ham. He is a powerful build, being 6ft 4 inches in height, which is something that Big Sam likes in his teams, and should enable him to suit the physicality of Premier League football. He is also supposedly very quick, and all of these physical attributes would make him a strong presence both in the heart of defence and the central midfield area.

Whilst the Hammers do have three good centre-backs already, in the form of James Tomkins, James Collins and Winston Reid, last season showed that extra cover is needed in that area, and Kouyate may well even push himself ahead of those in the pecking order. Central midfield is without a doubt an area the Hammers require strengthening however, and the leggy and quick Kouyate could play a pivotal role in that position should Allardyce prefer him to play there, potentially having the ability to close off opposition attacks and make lung busting runs forward.

A word of caution, however, is that the Premier League would be a big step up for Kouyate from playing in the Belgian league, and he is therefore unproven at such a high level. You also have to wonder why a top team has not come in for the Senegalese international previously, if the hype is to be believed. Still, from the evidence I have read, Kouyate does have the potential to become a very good addition to the squad.