West Ham hit the jackpot with £5m ace who’s now “one of the best signings”

The mood has changed for the better at West Ham United after two successive victories in the Premier League.

How fickle football is, with David Moyes, architect of such illustrious success down at the London Stadium, facing scrutiny over the longevity of his tenure after a poor run of results, the Scotsman’s pragmatic style of play creating something of a schism.

Still, the holding Europa Conference League champions – who await Freiburg in the last 16 of the Europa League this week – indeed seem to have put the recent malaise to bed and have reclaimed a seventh-place spot in the table, just two points behind Manchester United.

Defeating Everton at Goodison Park last time out, the Hammers overcame adversity to rattle the hosts with a late flurry, all three scorers (Kurt Zouma, Tomas Soucek, Edson Alvarez) and assist-makers (James Ward-Prowse, Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen) signed under Moyes’ leadership.

The 60-year-old has sculpted a bright future, and while he is out of contract at the end of the season, his influence is unrivalled across the club’s recent history, with the players reflecting this.

David Moyes’ best West Ham signings

West Ham have certainly had something of a chequered history on the transfer front, especially in the years preceding Moyes’ reign, with finances disbursed on high-profile stars who arrived with much promise and fanfare only to leave with a whimper.

Sebastien Haller and Felipe Anderson are two salient names who spring to mind, but that is not an exhaustive list by any stretch, and one of Moyes’ hallmarks is the focusing and polishing, of transfer strategy.

Just one month after he was re-appointed in December 2019, Bowen was signed from Championship side Hully City in a £20m plus add-ons deal. Soucek arrived on loan that same window and completed a permanent move worth roughly £18m in the summer.

Declan Rice was not exactly signed under Moyes’ leadership but the England star was nurtured to the fore from the academy en route to silverware, joining Arsenal in a £105m transfer last summer.

The money recouped from the midfield talisman’s sale was invested in exciting new additions such as Alvarez, Kudus and Ward-Prowse, who will all continue to play a big part in the future success.

This is all a roundabout way of paying homage to Moyes’ efforts, transcending the expectation and belief in east London. For all these successful acquisitions, one of the shrewdest, most underrated of the lot has to be Vladimir Coufal, who still doesn’t earn half the respect he deserves outside Irons spheres.

Why West Ham signed Vladimir Coufal

Back in 2020, West Ham pulled off the signing of right-back Coufal from Slavia Prague for a fee totalling just over £5m, the Czech international joining compatriot Soucek in the English capital.

Ryan Fredericks had been forced off during West Ham’s 4-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers and indeed only started six Premier League matches during the 2020/21 campaign, while Coufal had Champions League experience and an enlivening tenacity down the flank.

His energy and ability to dart up and down, box to box, has been especially important to allow Bowen and more recently Kudus to flourish, with these attacking wingers reliant on their goalscoring form and thus equally dependent on a hard-working right-back to ensure they have a license to sweep inside and wreak shell fire on opposing goalkeepers.

In total, the £35k-per-week ace has amassed 140 appearances for United since making his debut several seasons ago, and while he has yet to find the back of the net himself he has chipped in with 19 assists and proved himself a dynamic and determined member.

Vladimir Coufal’s season in numbers

Last term, Coufal played an important role for West Ham in their journey toward silver-laden success, completing 38 appearances in total and starting nine matches in the Conference League, but he only chipped in with one assist as a declined sense of fluency and verve on the domestic front warranted a more resilient, danger-thwarting approach.

This season, the Czech Republic international has thrived in a role of increased attacking success, having posted six assists from 25 Premier League fixtures.

As per Sofascore, he has averaged one key pass, two tackles, 1.4 interceptions, 4.3 ball recoveries, 2.7 clearances and 4.2 successful duels per game.

Presenter Dan Woffenden argues that Coufal is one of the club’s best signings in recent history and it’s certainly difficult to take a credible stand against this; given the paltry transfer fee and the “ridiculously consistent” football that Coufal has blessed West Ham with, he represents an exceptional value-for-money venture, with a slice of silverware to rubber stamp his signature as one of success.

As per FBref, Coufal ranks among the top 13% of full-backs across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 11% for interceptions, the top 6% for clearances and the top 16% for aerial duels won per 90, highlighting the rounded skill set that has made him such an excellent asset for Moyes.

Newcastle United’s Kieran Trippier and Tottenham Hotspur phenom Pedro Porro are the only defenders in the Premier League to have surpassed his assist tally this term, which is incredible given that both adversaries rank in the top ten for corners taken in the top flight this term. Coufal, by comparison, has taken one corner.

Perhaps somewhat understandably, Coufal has not seen his market value skyrocket during his time at West Ham but there is no doubt that the 31-year-old has forged quite the underrated career for himself under Moyes’ stewardship.

A constant, steady outlet down the right channel, Coufal is proof that delving down the less-trodden path can often unearth sparkling success.

It’s one that West Ham would do well to replicate with their future transfers. It hasn’t exactly gone wrong over the past few seasons, has it?