West Ham United have enjoyed considerable success under the tutelage of David Moyes, and certainly owe a lot to the veteran Scottish manager, having risen to European stature over the past two campaigns.
Granted, progress has fallen by the wayside this term, and the Hammers languish near the nadir of the Premier League after 22 matches, just two places and two points above Everton in 18th place, but there have certainly been the highest of highs to counteract the perils that plague the outfit at present.
But after confidently winning their Europa Conference League group, West Ham await the results of the first knockout phase in the competition as they prepare for their opposition, sights fixed on a surge towards what would be a monumental European triumph, should they succeed.
Did Olivier Giroud nearly join West Ham?
Moyes will be confident in his side’s ability to rectify the wrongs and end the season on a high, but he might cast a rueful gaze back to the transfer activity of 20/21 when assessing his team’s prospects of success, both domestically and in Europe, when a certain record-breaking French talisman slipped through Iron fingers.
Olivier Giroud, formerly of Arsenal and, more recently, Chelsea, departed Stamford Bridge for AC Milan in the summer of 2021, mere months after West Ham’s swoop for the veteran striker fell wide of the mark.
Did West Ham miss a trick with Giroud?
The roaring success of the past few years will have swiftly dissipated any dark clouds that followed the failed transfer to sign Giroud, with last season’s run to the Europa League semi-final an indication that the Hammers were on the up.
However, his abundant pedigree could have been just what Moyes needed, with his physicality and towering presence the perfect magnet to draw in defenders and create pockets of space for the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Said Benrahma to weave into.
And his experience, indeed a winner of the World Cup and Champions League among many other major honours, could have been the catalyst to ensuring the club overcame adversity against Eintracht Frankfurt, eventual Europa League champions, in the bitter disappointment of the penultimate stage.
Since the failed bid, the Hammers have spent £35.5m on Gianluca Scamacca and now £15m for Danny Ings, and with Giroud reportedly costing Milan just £855k, the deal certainly could’ve been one of the shrewdest, most prudent buys in recent West Ham history.
The latter, Ings, fell out of favour under Unai Emery at Aston Villa, starting only on two occasions in the league since the Spanish manager’s debut against Manchester United, and given that the fee paid dwarfs what Milan parted with for the illustrious Giroud, there might be a sense of resentment over the predicament – that could have been averted – that resulted in the requirement for a new forward.
Giroud is not only an imposing and physical forward threat, but an exquisite master of ball control, selfless, and a wise reader of the game, one of the more abundant footballing intellects on the major stage.
The World champion, hailed as “intelligent” and “exceptional” by Gary Lineker, is France’s all-time top goalscorer, plundering 53 goals from 120 appearances and breaking Thierry Henry’s record at the 2022 World Cup, and the storm that is his attacking calibre is showing no sign of abating, despite his twilight age.
The 36-year-old has scored 262 goals and supplied 91 assists at club level over the duration of his professional career, and despite his age, has landed 35 direct contributions from 67 appearances for the Rossoneri, including 11 goals this season.
Moyes would have dearly benefitted from a signing of Giroud’s ilk, and while £15m has been splashed on Ings to combat the club’s concerning position in the Premier League, one can’t help but feel the impact won’t be quite as profound, had Giroud donned the claret shirt.