West Ham United are still hoping to sign another centre-back this week after calling off a deal for Harry Maguire, and journalist Jacob Steinberg has confirmed that one player has now been "offered" to them…
Is Harry Maguire joining West Ham?
Maguire looked set to be on his way to the London Stadium, with West Ham agreeing a £30m fee to sign the Manchester United defender, but the move has now been called off as it entered the final stages.
As reported by transfer expert Fabrizio Romano on X, sources close to Maguire have stated there was "never an agreement on personal terms", despite the England international "respecting" the club, and he remains settled at Man United.
The Hammers grew tired of waiting for the defender to agree his exit from the Red Devils, as he was holding out for £7m to leave Old Trafford, and they have called the deal off, although there is a chance that it could be revived in the next two weeks.
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Having seemingly missed out on Maguire, journalist Steinberg has now taken to X to give an overview of what David Moyes' side plan to do next, saying:
"West Ham hoping to sign another centre-back this week after calling Maguire deal off. They have been offered Bayer Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tah."
The Leverkusen defender has been linked with a move to the London Stadium in the past, with it being reported the Irons held a concrete interest back at the start of June, and they have now been presented with the perfect opportunity to sign him.
How good is Jonathan Tah?
The 27-year-old has been plying his trade in the Bundesliga since the 2015-16 season, and he was once hailed as a "real battleship" by former teammate Christoph Kramer upon his arrival at Bayer Leverkusen.
Over the past eight seasons, the German has established himself as a vital player for the Bundesliga side, missing just two league games across the past two campaigns, and averaging a 6.81 SofaScore match rating last term.
However, there are doubts over whether the £47k-per-week defender would be a good signing for West Ham, considering Maguire averaged a 6.95 rating last term, in what you could say is a far tougher league, with the Englishman also performing better across a number of key defensive metrics.
Over the past year, the Man United defender has averaged more aerials won, clearances, blocks and tackles per 90 than the Hamburg-born defender, indicating he could be a far better addition to Moyes' squad.
Of course, Maguire is not without his flaws, making a shockingly high number of errors leading to goals in the season before last, but he is also an experienced international, and he has made a total of 219 appearances in the Premier League.
A move for the 30-year-old has not yet been totally excluded, but even if West Ham do not decide to go back in for him, it would probably be best to avoid Tah, as he has failed to stand out in the Bundesliga across a number of seasons.