Why West Ham should go all in to hijack Arsenal's €25m move for top class defender

West Ham have a big summer ahead of them as Graham Potter looks to put his own stamp on his newly inherited squad. The Hammers have the chance to bolster their ranks ahead of the 2025/26 season.

They turned to former Swansea City, Brighton and Hove Albion and Chelsea man Potter earlier in this campaign after making the decision to cut ties with Julen Lopetegui. He has since made a positive impression at the London Stadium.

The London outfit are currently sat in 15th place in the Premier League table with 11 fixtures left to play. They are a comfortable 16 points above the drop zone after their eye-catching 1-0 away win at the Emirates Stadium against Arsenal and 2-0 home victory over Leicester City.

West Ham should target Maxim de Cuyper

West Ham are being linked with a move for Club Brugge left-back Maxim De Cuyper, as per PianetaMilan, but face competition from Arsenal and AC Milan. The Gunners are said to have made ‘contact’ with the player over a possible €25million deal and the Hammers need to hijack their approach.

De Cuyper, 24, would be an ideal addition for Potter and would boost their defensive department. If he ended up joining them ahead of other teams, he could provide them with something different in defence.

The Belgium international, who has six caps under his belt, has been on the books of Club Brugge for his whole career to date. He has risen up through their academy rankd and was a regular for them at various different youth levels.

The Belgian outfit loaned him out to Westerlo for a couple of years to help him get some experience under his belt. He has since become a key player for his current club and they could face a battle to keep hold of him.

De Cuyper has made 96 appearances in all competitions and has chipped in with six goals. Club Brugge are currently sat in 2nd place in the league behind Genk.

What now for Graham Potter and West Ham?

West Ham’s name is likely to be mentioned in quite a few transfer speculation stories between now and the next window opening. In the meantime, they will be hoping to end this term on a high with some more wins.

It would be a surprise if De Cuyper was still at Club Brugge come next season. The Hammers may need to see off rivalry from the likes of Arsenal and AC Milan but the fact they might be able to offer him more of a chance of getting regular game time could help their cause.

It ended up being a quiet January for West Ham and Potter said at the time: “In every window there's always a responsibility for the club to look and to see if there's anything that can help us, whether that's short-term, medium-term, long-term.

“The January window is not the most easy of windows, it can be complicated. So, I have no expectations in terms of that. It’s more that my focus is on the team that we've got, the players that we've got, how I can try to help them. And then at the same time, always be aware of opportunities that can come.”