Kouyate in, Diame out at Upton Park?

Article by e-West Ham Correspondent Brandon Freeman

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The arrival of 24 year old Senegal midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate was met with a buzz of excitement as West Ham beat off competition from the likes of Valencia to sign the highly rated powerhouse and silence critics of the owners transfer policy which saw some less than inspirational players walk through the doors at Upton Park. Kouyate has been linked with the likes of Arsenal and Manchester City in the past, therefore his arrival does appear to be something of a coup for West Ham, with the player already having four league winners’ medals to his name. However, does the £7 million acquisition spell the end for Mohamed Diame at West Ham?

Diame has long since been linked with a move away from the club due to the ever present £3.5 million release clause in the midfielder’s contract, and has spoken emotionally about how Kenny Dalglish’s departure from Liverpool dashed his hopes of a dream move to Anfield. Diame was reported as saying “In my head I was already in Liverpool, it was next, I told everyone that I was there. It was as if one of my greatest wishes had been accomplished” Following Diame’s failed move to Liverpool he joined West Ham on a three-year deal from Wigan and enjoyed a fine first season scoring three stunning goals against Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United but failed to follow up his debut season heroics last season and struggled for form throughout. Earlier this year Diame went a strep further and was quoted in several newspapers as criticising West Ham’s transfer policy, “It was a very bad start and we made the mistake of not recruiting. We went through the season with almost the same players, which is never good”.

The fact that Diame has spoken so openly on several occasions about a move to a top six club with more ambition shows a blatant lack of respect for West Ham and the arrival of Kouyate may well mean that West Ham are ready to offload Diame and lower the wage bill. Diame has also spoken of how he feels “ready” for a move to a top-six side; however hammers fans will know that this is not necessarily the case. Diame’s skill and power is undeniable but the Senegalese midfielder never quite seems to give 100%, certainly not when asked to fulfil his defensive duties and has a tendency to overshadow his skill but wasting great attacking opportunities by shooting from the most unlikely of distances, so surely Diame has some work to do before he is ready for a top-six side.

Cheikhou Kouyate’s arrival will be made more interesting if Diame fails to secure a move away from West Ham as Kouyate has already spoken of how his best position is in midfield and has played down his ability to play in defence. Therefore surely if Big Sam continues to play with two holding midfield players Kouyate will play alongside Mark Noble rather than at Centre-back, a position he will probably only play if injuries require him to do so. As a result, it certainly appears as though Kouyate’s arrival may mean the end of Diame’s time in claret and blue, or perhaps Kevin Nolan will be relived of his duties as skipper, who knows? What ever happens hammers fans can be sure that the merry-go-round that is the transfer window will reveal its secrets soon.

Do you believe Kouyate’s arrival means Mohammed Diame will be leaving West Ham, or will Sam Allardyce be able to accommodate both players? Leave your comments bellow and follow our twitter page @e_westham for the latest news and views, all things West Ham.

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