Opinions

Dawson refusal for West Brom must end West Ham pursuit

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OPINION

West Ham must end their pursuit of West Bromwich Albion defender Craig Dawson as his latest actions suggest he could be a toxic presence if welcomed to the London Stadium.

The Daily Mirror reported on Saturday that the 28-year-old right-back along with teammate Ben Foster were currently training on their own after refusing to go the club’s Portugal training camp.

The newspaper stated that the duo, who want to leave, made the decision in light of there being Premier League teams interested in them.

The Hammers, as claimed by the newspaper’s report, are interested in signing Dawson and have already seen a £12million bid rejected for his services.

Given that the defender who earns £40,000-a-week at the WBA (Source: Spotrac) is drastically refusing his club’s wishes for him to be at their training camp in Portugal, it shows what a toxic attitude he has.

The 28-year-old may be desperate to secure Premier League football for himself in the 2018/19 campaign but there is no reason to take such unprofessional actions in order to try and force the club’s hands.

As the report states WBA forward Jay Rodriguez is keen on a move away but has still travelled to Portugal with the squad and that is the right attitude to have.

The Hammers appeared to have enough turmoil behind the scenes as well as on the pitch in their 2017/18 campaign and the last thing they need to do is add a toxic presence to their squad.

Dawson may be playing up at WBA in order to secure a move to the London Stadium but if he is willing to be unprofessional for one club then he’s destined to be an issue at another.

For example if the 28-year-old joined the Hammers and was dropped from Pellegrini’s first-team then would he once again take an action that causes a negative atmosphere to surround his club.

The 2018/19 campaign is set to be the start of Pellegrini’s potential revolution at the Hammers and he won’t be helped by having negativity in his squad.

Dawson’s potential attitude being a red flag should be enough to see the club’s interest in him halted as while he did put in some decent displays during his 32 outings last season, there are plenty of enforcers on the same level or better than him for the Hammers to purchase.

Therefore Pellegrini must end his side’s pursuit of Dawson instantly as his refusal for WBA shows that he could become a toxic presence in the Hammers’ squad if recruited.

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