When speaking on the West Ham Way podcast last night (Tuesday, January 28th), reliable Hammers insider ExWHUemployee claimed that West Ham have been knocked back after enquiring about Norwich City right-back Max Aarons:

“We made an enquiry for Norwich’s right-back Aarons, but that was rejected.”

The Canaries ace has really impressed in the Premier League this season.

And he would undoubtedly be an upgrade on both Pablo Zabaleta and Ryan Fredericks.

The ageing Argentine is leaving in the summer, and the 27-year-old former Fulham man has been really poor since moving to the London Stadium.

Fredericks has plenty of pace, but he doesn’t use it to good effect. He lacks confidence, and rarely drives down the right hand side on the overlap.

This is why Aarons would be such a great signing. The 20-year-old Norwich star’s game is based around getting forward just as much it is defending.

According to Who Scored, Aarons has averaged 1.5 dribbles and has been fouled 1.4 times per game in 22 Premier League outings this season. He has also averaged 0.5 shots per game. Fredericks, meanwhile, has averaged just 0.4 dribbles and has been fouled only 0.7 times per match in 18 league appearances. The 27-year-old has also failed to have a single attempt at goal this term (Who Scored).

Anyone who watches football regularly can surely see that Aarons is a real talent.

Last season in the Championship, only two defenders attempted more dribbles than the 20-year-old, and he has been described as an athletic, all-energy, defensively stout full-back by Sky Sports.

According to the Daily Mail, Norwich value Aarons at around £30 million. And whilst that seems like a lot of money, if the youngster continues to improve, he will be worth a lot more than that in a few year’s time.

If the Canaries would in fact sell for that price, West Ham should just pay up for the England under-21 international. He would be more than worth the money.