West Ham’s remarkable start to the season has been built on the foundation of a sturdy defense. The linchpin to that has been Winston Reid who has really blossomed under the guidance of Big Sam the last season or two, but a departure for the club would not be a wise move for either party.
Us fans love Reid. His positioning is second to none, and he crops up with the odd goal here and there – and that winner against Millwall is forever in our memory. Were he to leave however, where do we find someone of his calibre on the market that would be willing to join? That might be a different story if we qualify for European football, but it’s such a congested race for a top five finish, we can’t be banking on that.
Big Sam remains confident of resigning Reid to a new long term deal sooner or later, but time is running out. It’s said that the two parties are at loggerheads on the matter, and if no progress is made in the next couple of weeks then West Ham will withdraw from negotiations altogether, taking it as a sign of disrespect and that Reid no longer wishes to stay at the club.
Reid’s ability is unquestionable, and he is finally getting the recognition he deserves, but would he start for a top four club in the Premier League? It’s questionable. While he is technically stronger than the likes of Dejan Lovren, Gary Cahill or Chris Smalling, in my opinion anyway, he doesn’t come with that same price-tag or implied calibre of those players. The ‘top’ teams like to splash their cash on perceivably stronger players, rather than making the astute Bosman transfer.
Let’s look at some of the recent defensive acquisitions in the Premier League by the top six clubs (we’ll begrudgingly include Spurs here). First I’ll list the last free transfer defender the team signed, and then the ensuing big-fee defenders they each brought in after.
As that table shows, is it uncommon for a top English side to sign a defender on a free transfer, and they rarely go on to become a first team regular at those sides, which you’d think would be Reid’s main objective. I doubt he would want to sit on the bench collecting his weekly wage.
Sagna since signing for Manchester City has found first team opportunities hard to find with Pablo Zabaleta in the mix. Kolo Toure plays a rotational role in Liverpool’s back three at the moment, a squad role that Juliano Belletti and William Gallas were all too familiar with during their brief stints at Chelsea and Tottenham respectively. Sol Campbell only made a handful of appearances during his second Arsenal stint at the back end of his career. Only Laurent Blanc was a regular as a free transfer acquisition for United. Brought in to replace Jaap Stam, Blanc played a significant role in United’s title winning season in 2003.
Your price-tag carries a lot of weight in the modern game. While a heavy cost doesn’t always equate to worthwhile performances, there’s an innate belief amongst the football community that if you cost more you’re a better player than those who cost less. As naive as that is, it’s true. Clubs will play their big-money flop over the solid £3m signings in most instances because they are desperate for their investment to come good, and that’s what I unfortunately see happening with Reid. It’s hard for me personally to see Arsene Wenger break up the Koscielny-Mertesacker partnership, regardless of how poor they are playing as a tandem so far this season.
Personally, it’s tough to see Reid next season starting for an Arsenal or Liverpool, due to the vast sums of money they have invested in their defences in recent years, which is why him and the club should sort out this contract dispute ASAP – just give him what he want’s. He’s our best defender, and better than anyone we could bring in. Extend his deal, and he can be a quintessential part of the club going forward into 2015 and beyond.
