OPINION
West Ham must sell Adrian this summer and swiftly hijack the reported race to sign free agent Tim Krul in order to replace him.
Claret & Hugh reported that Manuel Pellegrini had told the Spanish goalkeeper to fight for his place at the club and that he would get opportunities to feature if he put in good performances despite the £7million arrival of Lukasz Fabianski.
Adrian’s current £50,000-a-week contract (Source: Spotrac) is set to expire next summer and the current transfer window would be the club’s last real chance to gain a fee for him if he was to depart.
The 31-year-old previously impressed for the Hammers but it’s fair to say that during the 2017/18 season he didn’t put in enough good displays to deserve to be kept at the club.
While Adrian spent most of his latest campaign stuck behind Joe Hart in the pecking order when he did feature several of his displays were riddled with blunders and contributed to the club’s poor defensive record.
The veteran keeper conceded 31 goals in 22 outings in his 2017/18 campaign and managed to keep only eight clean sheets.
Aside from his contract situation and poor performances, the goalkeeper should also be sold this summer due to him potentially being a toxic presence in the locker room if he ends up falling behind Fabianski in the club’s pecking order.
The Sun reported during the height of the Hammers’ relegation battle that Adrian was disillusioned at the club due to not being first-choice and that he would force his exit if David Moyes was kept as manager.
Given that the club needed everyone to band together during this period where they faced the real threat of slipping into the Championship, it suggests that Adrian could be a potential disruption presence behind the scenes to Manuel Pellegrini’s new era as soon as something goes wrong.
This all means that the club should cash in on Adrian this summer even though they’d be a goalkeeper down.
Luckily for Pellegrini, the perfect replacement for Adrian is able to be snapped up on a free this summer.
The Hammers upon selling their Spanish goalkeeper must hijack the reported race to sign Premier League proven talent Krul who is available for free after his Brighton contract expired at the end of last season.
HITC Sport reported that Bristol City and Reading were chasing the 30-year-old’s services and the Hammers should be able to beat them to his signature.
Krul who has previously impressed in the majority of the 157 Premier League appearances he has made would be a fine option to compete with Fabianski for the Hammers’ No.1 jersey next season.
The 30-year-old has tons of top-flight experience and has always been a reliable presence between the sticks for whichever club he has featured for.
Therefore the Hammers should sell Adrian this summer and hijack the reported race to sign free agent Krul as he would easily replace the Spanish goalkeeper at the London Stadium.
