So Cheikhou Kouyate has finally gone to Crystal Palace for an undisclosed fee, which is probably around £11 million. He's been a pretty good servant to West Ham over his four seasons, although he never quite became the player he could have been. He started off really well after joining in 2014-15 with the side fourth at Christmas. But then he faded with the rest of Big Sam's team. He played well during the final season at Upton Park in 2015-16 when the whole side was lifted by Payet. But like so many players he was affected by the move to the London Stadium and had a mixed couple of seasons.
There were highlights such as a superb headed goal against Chelsea in the Carling Cup in 2016-17 and a vital winner against Swansea in a relegation six-pointer. He gave a storming performance in the 3-0 win against Southampton last season, setting up Mario's opener with a surging run. Yet in other games he was mediocre and struggled for consistency. But to be fair he generally put in a shift and played well as an emergency centre back when called upon. He scored 12 goals in 129 WHU appearances and was less injury-prone than a lot of our midfielders. He'll also be in the record books for scoring West Ham's first goal at the London Stadium against Domzale in the Europa League.
Though I'm still not sure why he played four seasons with a bandage on his wrist — it must be the longest-lasting minor injury in football. Palace will be getting a decent Premier League player who probably needs a new challenge — and a good coach like Roy Hodgson may well improve him.
2 comments:
A fair price but central midfield needs bolstering now with Nobes/Wiltshire/Obiang unless Rice plays there...?
Yes it's looking a bit weak with Wilshere having to be rested sometimes and Noble getting on a bit.
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