Many West Ham United fans have been lauding the ‘bargain’ deal the east London club are said to have agreed with Slavia Prague to sign Tomas Soucek permanently in the summer, as per the Evening Standard.
Soucek has been speaking with the Evening Standard of his determination to help keep West Ham in the Premier League, which would ensure his loan move from Slavia Prague would become a permanent deal.
West Ham are claimed to have agreed to pay £16.5million at the close of the campaign should Soucek help David Moyes manage to keep the London Stadium outfit in the top-flight, with the Irons still in a relegation fight with Watford, AFC Bournemouth and Aston Villa with three games to play.
Soucek arrived in east London during the January window on an initial six-month transfer and has shone in what has otherwise been a drab campaign for the Hammers, with the 25-year-old adding another aspect to Moyes’ midfield in the 10 fixtures he has featured in.
The 25-cap Czech Republic international has thus far struck home two goals in claret and blue, too, with strikes coming in July’s 3-2 win over rivals Chelsea and again in the Irons’ following 2-2 draw away to Newcastle United.
West Ham are only three points above the drop zone heading into Friday’s crunch relegation scrap with Watford, and Soucek will be hoping to take points off the Hornets in order to stay at a club where he is enjoying life every day.
“I am enjoying the Premier League because we play against big teams and I’m enjoying every day on the training ground,” Soucek told the Evening Standard.
Is Soucek worth £16.5m?
Yes
No
“I’m playing with guys that I’ve played with for four or five months but I’m really enjoying it and, hopefully, we’ll be safe and I will be able to enjoy more years here.
“We can’t afford to be naive to the situation we’re in. We’re in a relegation fight. It’s a massive win but we’re ready to go Friday.”
Large corners of the West Ham fanbase would seem to likewise be looking forward to many more years of Soucek at the London Stadium, as these are just some of the messages shared as supporters hailed the alleged £16.5m agreement as a bargain in the making.
@davidgold and Sullivan do not even think about haggling that price down once the invoice comes through! Set up a standing order for £16m on July 27th once we stay up! @WestHam ⚒⚒⚒ https://t.co/YoHgsYWTCx
— Westy Hammer (@Westyhammer) July 13, 2020
Bargain
— A Quinn (@Alfie44853343) July 13, 2020
Worth so much more than that already!
— Nathan Franklin (@NthnFrnkln) July 13, 2020
An absolute bargain! https://t.co/dNoLRlL646
— Sean Sweeney (@SeanSweeney09) July 13, 2020
Best 16.5m we’ll ever spend
— S. I. N. G. H (@pacifer123) July 13, 2020
Has been excellent of late, 16.5m is a snip!!!!! ⚒
— Bunny (@Bunny88509334) July 13, 2020
Besides Payet this will be the best value for money signing we’ve made in recent times https://t.co/fDbkgRf9AA
— Reiss⚡ (@Wilko17) July 13, 2020
Not every West Ham fan was as keen to see a £16.5m price tag put alongside Soucek’s potential permanent move to the London Stadium, though.
Soucek has only had 10 Premier League fixtures to prove his worth to West Ham so far, in which the Slavia Prague product has averaged 2.6 successful tackles from 4.0 attempts per 90 minutes, plus 2.1 interceptions, 0.8 blocks, 2.1 shots of which just 0.8 are on target, plays 0.5 key balls and is yet to beat an opponent on the dribble, per stats collected by WhoScored.
More than I expected but worth it https://t.co/IHBZsUHBJw
— Claret and sky blue (@iron0705) July 13, 2020
The price being touted for Soucek has also caused some West Ham fans to focus on what it would mean for the club’s plans to strengthen other areas of the squad.
Sullivan is already saying there’s no money for transfers, if he pays up for Soucek 🤞there’s no money for the 3-4 players minimum that we need ⚒
— Bob austin (@bobaustin65) July 13, 2020