West Ham: Taylor Harwood-Bellis would be major Zouma upgrade
Man City’s Taylor Harwood-Bellis impressed in the Championship last season and may be ready to make the step up to Premier League level with West Ham.
West Ham United remain interested in signing Taylor Harwood-Bellis from Manchester City as David Moyes steps up his search for a new centre-back.
Who are West Ham signing?
Bringing in at least one new central midfield is Moyes’ top priority after losing captain Declan Rice to Arsenal, but the Irons cannot afford to stand still when it comes to strengthening in other areas.
A central defender will surely be brought in between now and the end of the transfer window on September 1, with City’s Harwood-Bellis one of those touted as a target for the Europa Conference League winners.
According to The Guardian, West Ham are still working on a deal for the 21-year-old gem, who helped loan club Burnley to Premier League promotion last season before winning the Euro U21 Championship with England earlier this month.
The Evening Standard previously reported that Harwood-Bellis, who is also wanted by fellow London side Fulham, is valued at a reasonable £15m by City.
How good is Taylor Harwood-Bellis?
Harwood-Bellis may feel a little disappointed not to be given a chance to shine at City after starring for Burnley last season, but he has Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake, Ruben Dias, John Stones and Aymeric Laporte in front of him.
The Englishman has featured eight times under Guardiola, but not at all in the Premier League, and earned praise from the Catalan coach for his “aggressive” defensive style in an EFL Cup win over Oxford United four years ago.
Moyes is said to be after a right-sided centre-back, which would almost certainly mean he is seeking an upgrade on the inconsistent Kurt Zouma to partner Angelo Ogbonna.
While a steady enough player in the top tier, Zouma has often come in for criticism, including from his Chelsea manager at the time Jose Mourinho when describing one of the defender’s displays as “rubbish”.
Comparing Harwood-Bellis and Zouma is difficult given the former has not played in the Premier League, but last season’s figures provide an indication of what his game is about.
Harwood-Bellis won more tackles per 90 minutes than Zouma (0.68 v 0.18), averaged more blocks per 90 (0.94 v 0.77) and intercepted the ball more often (1.92 per 90 v 1.36), as per FBref.
Away from the purely defensive metrics, the City defender completed substantially more passes (72.4 per 90 v 31.7) – though that can also come down to a team’s playing style – and won more aerial duels per 90 (2.90 v 2.49).
Again, Zouma played at a higher level than Harwood-Bellis last season, but the future senior England international did enough under arguable Premier League legend Vincent Kompany in the second tier last season to show he is ready to make the step up.
A player who is very comfortable on the ball and able to defend – and not to mention his relatively low asking price – Harwood-Bellis appears to be a ready-made and huge upgrade on Zouma for Moyes heading into the new campaign, given the glaring evidence above.
