Relegated West Ham have hinted that they could be keen on loaning Scott Parker back to a Premier League club for one season as they themselves look to regain promotion to the top flight.
The England midfielder is a relatively big fish in a small pond at Upton Park, and the East Londoners accept that they have a fight on their hands to keep hold of him.
However, they are reasonably confident that they can bounce back to the Premier League quickly, and regain Parker’s services then.
Hammers co-owner David Sullivan said: “We’d love a deal. This has been mooted that we’d loan him out for a year for a substantial fee and then when we get promotion he’d come back to us. That sort of deal would appeal to us because we love Scott.
“We’re not desperate to do anything. We’d want a loan fee as he has substantial value. He’s at the peak of his game at the moment. He’ll be a superstar wherever he goes.”
If Wenger is so keen to keep an eye on the purse strings, then this move surely represents perfect value for him? Obviously at the age of 30, the boss won’t be keen to sign Parker on a three-year deal, but if he can just bring him in for one year, we’ll get him at his peak without having to pay too much. What’s not to love about this idea?
Arguably we’re more in need of centre-backs, but Alex Song is not exactly irreplaceable. We should always be looking to do better, and a bit of grit in midfield is definitely lacking at this club, not to mention overall leadership. Parker would bring in all of these qualities, and Song would be a more reliable backup than Denilson or Diaby.
Chelsea have just lost Michael Essien for five months. Let’s not wait around too long or they will surely come in and take advantage of this opportunity.
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