The teams reached an agreement on a £30 million ($38 million) transfer price last week, and the 28-year-old player underwent a physical on Friday before moving from Southampton to West Ham on a four-year deal on Monday. The midfielder was moved to tears as he said goodbye to his teammates and staff following Southampton’s 4-4 draw with Norwich City on Saturday afternoon in the Championship.
Flynn Downes will join Saints on a season-long loan once Ward-Prowse arrives. Downes’ illness caused a delay in the transfer, but the midfielder is scheduled to undergo his physical on Wednesday. Downes, who played little with the Hammers last season, may make his Saints debut on Saturday against Plymouth Argyle. The midfielder will work with Russell Martin again, who previously managed Swansea City.
James Word Prowse will be wearing a very special number-
Ward-Prowse, who will wear the No. 7 jersey, joins Edson Alvarez, who joined West Ham from Ajax last week, as the club’s second summer addition. Before the summer transfer window closes, more arrivals are anticipated, and PSV Eindhoven winger Johan Bakayoko and offensive midfielder Mohammed Kudus of Ajax have drawn interest.
The midfielder believed he needed to go when Southampton was demoted to the Championship at the end of the previous season in order to maintain his prospects of playing for England. Since Rice joined Arsenal for £105 million in July, West Ham has been chasing a deal for Ward-Prowse, but it took many weeks for the transfer to be completed.
Despite the prolonged nature of the discussions during the summer, Ward-Prowse retained his composure and did not allow it lower his standards throughout preseason training. He excelled in the speed and endurance test for the first-team squad and made himself available to play Southampton’s preseason matches. Then, on August 4, he began the team’s 2-1 victory against Sheffield Wednesday, which served as the club’s inaugural match of the year.
James can really help the Hammers in set-pieces-
Ward-Prowse earned 55 goals in 410 games for Southampton in his senior season. 33 of those came from penalties or straight free kicks. The midfielder, who is known for his set pieces, grew up praising David Beckham. Ward-Prowse is one straight free kick away from matching the Premier League record established by the former Manchester United player more than 20 years ago, having scored 17 in the league.
As the transfer market shuts on September 1, Moyes will choose his captain, and the midfielder’s leadership will be crucial to his team. When Rice moved to Arsenal, he gave up the captaincy, but Moyes now has a solid replacement in Ward-Prowse. He had already led the England Under-21s in the 2016 Toulon Tournament and the 2017 European Championships when he was named Southampton’s full-time captain at the age of 25.
Must Read: Interesting Update On West Ham’s Efforts To Sign James Ward-Prowse, One Of The Most Talented Players
Concluding remarks on the new signing-
In various categories for 2022–2023, Ward–Prowse outscored his new West Ham midfield teammates. In 38 league games, he earned nine goals and four assists. He took 44 shots, more than West Ham’s Tomas Soucek (34) and Pablo Fornals (27) combined, and he excelled in opportunities created, accumulating 74 as opposed to Fornals’ 20 and Soucek’s 15.
In terms of interceptions, Ward-Prowse (55) outperformed Soucek (53) and Fornals (14) defensively. Additionally, the former Southampton midfielder outperformed the pair in terms of recoveries with 222.
With the addition of Ward-Prowse, West Ham has given its midfield the much-needed depth it needs. There is a lot of anticipation that the midfielder will succeed in the London Olympics given his qualities both on and off the pitch.
