West Ham's bold next January transfer could be bold raid for rivals' £20m signing
West Ham are desperate to strengthen their team in January as they look to avoid relegation
West Ham United have emerged as one of the leading contenders to sign Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jörgensen, according to reports.
The Hammers are currently marooned in the relegation places and are in severe danger of dropping down to the Championship for the first time since 2012 when they were promoted as play-off winners under Sam Allardyce.
West Ham have the worst defensive record in the entire Premier League after conceding 43 times in 21 matches this season while their goal difference of -21 is the second worst in the division, with only Wolves having a lower amount. Their manager, Nuno Espirito Santo, inherited a team that had just signed Mads Hermansen for £20m despite his relegation with Leicester City last term.
The Dane was signed by Graham Potter to become the first choice goalkeeper but was dropped from the starting line-up after four matches and has remained second choice behind Alphonse Areola since then.
However, Santo is not thought to be convinced by either goalkeeper following the club’s poor defensive showing since his arrival, which comes as a stark contrast to his Nottingham Forest side from last season who prided themselves on clean sheets and defensive solidarity.
Filip Jörgensen to West Ham latest
Mustafa Karataş, a Turkish journalist, reports that West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth are showing interest in Chelsea goalkeeper Jörgensen. The one-time Danish international joined the Blues from Villarreal in the summer of 2024 for a figure worth around £20m and he’s contracted to the club until 2031.
Jörgensen played 36 league matches during his final season in La Liga but has never established himself as the first choice at Chelsea, often playing second fiddle to Robert Sanchez between the posts. He did, however, manage to make 24 appearances in total last season, with the majority of those being his 14 appearances in the Europa Conference League along with a number of other cup competitions.
Jörgensen wants the opportunity to play regularly this summer and is widely reported to also be a target for Turkish giants Besikas, who are thought to be leading the charge at this stage.
Would Jörgensen be a good fit for West Ham?
Jörgensen helped Chelsea to Conference League glory when featuring regularly last season, but hasn’t had a solid run of matches to prove what he’s capable of in the league as of yet. However, it’s worth noting that during his final season in La Liga he showed great potential. For example, according to stats from FB ref, he made the most saves in the division (143) while also keeping six clean sheets in the 2023/24 campaign.
He showed strong ability to deal with crosses, stopping 33 which was the fifth most in the division while generally having strong distribution after completing 40% of his passes over a distance of 40 yards or more which was the third best in La Liga.
Typically, Nuno has had a good record when signing goalkeepers. He took a punt on Matz Sels at Nottingham Forest despite his disappointing stint at Newcastle United and helped the Belgian excel to make the Team of the Season last term, while he signed Rui Patrício to Wolves during his time at Molineux.
It’s likely that the best form of action for the Hammers would be a loan move with an option to buy if the club beat the drop, but at this stage it’s not clear if they are eyeing a permanent or loan offer for the 23-year-old.