West Ham United were a day late and a dollar short last season, but there is hope that Julen Lopetegui and his newly assembled crew can drive back into European contention this year.
Lopetegui has led out the same line-up for the Irons' opening two fixtures in the Premier League, with a host of expensive summer signings yet to receive their first starting berth.
The Spaniard is seeking to inculcate his vision steadily and is reluctant to overload the London Stadium with fresh blood and threaten the stability and fluency of his team. Still, that said, West Ham aren't done yet, with attention turned toward the market ahead of Friday's deadline.
West Ham transfer news
According to Football Insider, West Ham could be inclined to return for Reiss Nelson, whom they had been interested in earlier this summer, following a change in Arsenal's stance.
The Gunners have played hardball over their talent in recent months, seemingly rejecting West Ham's £15m offer in July, but with the window nearing its conclusion there's hope that a deal can be struck.
The £100k-per-week winger has also been on Crystal Palace and Leicester City's radar, so United technical director Tim Steidten will need to act fast.
What Reiss Nelson would bring to West Ham
Nelson is 24 years old and has proven himself a Premier League-level player on numerous occasions, but he's not going to earn anything more than a bit-part role at Mikel Arteta's Arsenal and must surely consider jumping ship at this stage of his career.
24/25
Arsenal
1 (0)
0
0
23/24
Arsenal
24 (5)
1
3
22/23
Arsenal
18 (5)
3
3
21/22
Feyenoord
32 (18)
4
7
20/21
Arsenal
11 (5)
1
1
19/20
Arsenal
22 (12)
3
3
As you can see, his performances at Arsenal have dwindled after an exciting start to life in north London – and that's without even harking back to his emphatic loan spell in Germany with Hoffenheim.
That year – 2018/19 – an up-and-coming Nelson posted seven goals from just 23 matches in the German top flight, despite starting only five times.
Endowed with an invincible air of confidence that only comes from those at the maiden stage of their career, Nelson put his name on the map, with German outlet Die Welt even writing that he 'knows no fear with the ball at his feet'.
As per FBref, he ranked among the top 1% of attacking midfielders and wingers in the Bundesliga that year for goals scored per 90, at an extraordinary rate of 0.98.
But perhaps more impressively, his underlying metrics made a telling comment on Nelson's pace and physicality, ranking among the top 3% for progressive carries and the top 8% for successful take-ons and shot-creating actions per 90.
Lopetegui will hope to recapture some of that prodigious potential and mix it into a West Ham frontline that is starting to look at dynamic as it is deep, and the best part is, Nelson might not even be the only incoming yet to alight in east London this week, with news of Tammy Abraham's potential transfer gathering more and more steam.
Imagine Reiss Nelson & Tammy Abraham
Abraham was one of the first to pump Nelson up upon the Englishman's loan move to Feyenoord in the Netherlands in 2021, tweeting 'showtime broskiii' to show his support.
Nelson and Abraham would strike an instant chord under Lopetegui's wing, for they are close friends and actually played together for England U21s throughout 2018 and 2019 before the former Chelsea striker earned a call-up to Gareth Southgate's senior Three Lions squad.
Chemistry is crucial in football but the perks of welcoming both players to the fold would stretch far beyond simple camaraderie. Abraham might have spent the lion's share of the past 12 months sidelined with a knee injury but he is now fit again and previously played an instrumental role in Roma's Conference League triumph in 2021/22, scoring 27 goals in all competitions.
Moreover, he's an agile and creative forward, averaging one key pass per game across his opening two Serie A campaigns, so he could be the man to ensure that Nelson rediscovers his Midas touch in front of goal and provides Lopetegui with a wonderful new dimension.
West Ham have been in contact with Abraham this summer as they search for competition for Niclas Fullkrug, and according to Sunday's newspaper edition of Corriere dello Sport, the Italian side would entertain a €25m (£21m) sale, perhaps even agreeing to an initial loan move.
Once hailed as a "goal machine" himself by former youth coach Stephen Elliott, the 26-year-old would find that he can piece his promising career back together at West Ham, arriving without having to shoulder to heavy a burden and instead proving himself within a large cluster of talent.
Nelson's pace has not abandoned him and he would mirror a certain Ghanaian winger's attributes on the right side of the field – though no one would expect him to perform such feats to the same degree.
But there's an alluring element to getting the deal done, to birthing a new sense of fluidity and fizz to the Hammers' attack. The Arsenal talent is exactly the type of signing needed to bring the squad up a gear and carry this proud club back into the European limelight.
Nelson might feel like something of a risk but he would be an excellent addition at just £15m it would be something of a no-brainer, especially since his right-sided preference would provide Jarrod Bowen with some actual competition.
His arrival is of course dependent on outgoings, but if Danny Ings, James Ward-Prowse and the like are shipped on, this could be an excellent move for West Ham, who are working toward quite the resurgence.
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