West Ham told Craig Dawson 2.0 is 'worth a punt' this summer | OneFootball

West Ham United could look to recreate the impact of Craig Dawson with the signing of defender Adam Webster this summer.

As West Ham United prepare to return to the Championship for the first time in well over a decade, The Irons are set for a busy summer transfer window.

Amid upheaval behind the scenes and upstairs in the club’s hierarchy, manager Nuno Espirito Santo has confirmed he will remain at the London Stadium as the club aim to bounce back to the Premier League at the first attempt.

Having led Wolverhampton Wanderers to the Championship title in 2018, Nuno will be burdened with similarly high expectations but a lot of work is required on the squad.

Already quite a thin group in terms of the sheer numbers, West Ham do possess some quality but question marks have to remain over the future of the likes of star men such as Mateus Fernandes, Crysencio Summerville and Jarrod Bowen.

West Ham have been linked with plenty of players already this summer, and are reportedly eyeing up a raid of Cardiff City for the likes of Dylan Lawlor and Rubin Colwill, but another man that has been linked is experienced defender Adam Webster.

West Ham urged to take a ‘punt’ on Adam Webster

Having been relegated, West Ham will be searching to create a balanced squad that possesses some hardened EFL experience and Adam Webster is certainly someone who would provide that.

Having begun his career at Portsmouth before playing in the Championship for Ipswich Town and Bristol City, Webster joined Brighton in the summer of 2019 but will leave the AMEX Stadium at the end of his contract this summer.

Injuries have hampered his minutes down on the south coast in recent times but FLW’s West Ham Fan Pundit Ryan Horn believes he would be worth taking a ‘punt’ on this summer.

Ryan says: “He is worth a punt. He wouldn’t be my first or second or third option but he is worth a punt.

“I think that he’ll have the Craig Dawson effect. He is on the other side of 30 and has been dealing with injury all season, and I believe he is still out injured now.

“But, I remember when we signed Craig Dawson, we were all hesitant about it and we signed him from a team that was just relegated but he became a fan favourite.

“He worked hard. He fought for the shirt. I am feeling that with Adam Webster. I think he offers a lot of experience, he’s got leadership qualities, which is something we have lacked at the club after losing (Vladimir) Coufal, (Aaron) Cresswell; it has just been (Jarrod) Bowen and (Tomas) Soucek on their own.

“I would take him. There are other options that I like the look of first, on the younger side, but if he passes all the medical stuff then I would take him.

“More like a deadline day transfer, rather than a ‘lets get him through the door right now’ sort of thing.”

Change of the guard at the back for West Ham

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It remains to be seen as to what system Nuno Espirito Santo will prefer to play next season, having been loyal to a back four in the Premier League with The Hammers and Nottingham Forest before that.

Prior to that, though, he was rigid with a back three shape that he got success with at Wolves and so extra defensive numbers may be required for an area of the pitch that already appears light for West Ham.

That is especially the case following reports that former Barcelona defender Jean-Clair Todibo wants out of the club alongside Greece international centre-back Konstantinos Mavropanos.

With Axel Disasi returning to parent club Chelsea, too, that leaves Max Kilman as the only first-team option in the centre of the defence and so reinforcements are required.

With that in mind, West Ham will surely also be aiming to simply bring in squad players as well as guaranteed starters, with Webster straddling that designation.

The 31-year-old provides a wealth of experience with close to 150 appearances in the Premier League to his name but caution has to be urged with regards to his fitness.

If he was brought in, he would provide crucial depth and experience for The Hammers but it is unlikely to be the case that he would be their only defensive signing.