West Ham United have been boosted by the latest movement regarding the transfer of Kevin Malcuit of Saint Etienne. The French club have reportedly turned down a £4.4m offer from fellow Ligue 1 club Lille for the defender. Slaven Bilic who is very keen to bring the player to London Stadium is expected to table a bid for the player next.
The Hammers had a bid rejected in January but this time they have approached the French club with real interest. Bilic wants some influential characters in the team to the give the side a complete overhaul.
West Ham signed Pablo Zabaleta from Manchester City on a free transfer recently but the Argentine defender is 32 and Bilic cannot take a risk by deploying him on the right side for the entire season. He might have a bag full of experience in the Premier League but age could be a deciding factor given the current rate of competition in the Premier League.
Bilic had his problems regarding the right back section, particularly. Despite having the potential to thrive in the Premier League, Sam Byram has struggled with his fitness while Alvaro Arbeloa has barely featured for the Hammers after arriving from Real Madrid on a free transfer. Arbeloa is expected to leave the club so a new player on the right side is a priority for Bilic for quite obvious reasons.
Malcuit has a pretty solid background as he has come through the various divisions of the French league before establishing himself in the top tier with St Etienne. The French club lost to Manchester United in the Europa League but Malcuit made a lasting impression on Jose Mourinho who reportedly is very interested in the right back.
Malcuit is like the typical modern day full-back who loves to surge ahead with his marauding run through the flanks. Malcuit has a blistering pace and he often compliments it with his continuous overlapping. With Bilic often deploying a three-man defence last season, he can also be utilised as a wing back.
Cheikhou Kouyate and Havard Nordtveit have done pretty decently as a makeshift right back but the proper need of a right back needs to be sorted out. The Hammers got a large chunk of television rights money and could use that money to fund the move. The defender has two years left on his contract and an offer of around £10m should be enough for the Hammers to seal a move for him.
