"He'd probably relish that" - QPR told to swoop for ex-West Ham player following contract wrangle | OneFootball

Divin Mubama is a free agent following the expiration of his contract with West Ham United, and is the subject of interest from Championship clubs.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

QPR are looking to progress up the Championship table next season, as manager Marti Cifuentes enters what will be his first full season in charge at Loftus Road.

The R's boss played a large role in turning around the fortunes of the club in 2023/24, and ultimately guided the club to Championship safety.

Cifuentes was able to start grinding out results for Rangers, and turned them into a much harder team to beat in the second half of the season.

After ending last season with three consecutive wins, including a 4-0 home victory over Leeds United, there is renewed optimism around Loftus Road that, after a couple of years treading water in the second tier, the R's can start competing at the right end of the table again in 2024/25.

QPR urged to try and sign ex-West Ham striker Divin Mubama

New signigns will be needed though in the coming weeks and months - the Hoops have already got to work on their squad with Paul Nardi, Hevertton Santos and Liam Morrison all arriving at Loftus Road, but that will not be enough, especially with Chris Willock's exit now confirmed, leaving the club short in the final third.

And whilst he wouldn't be a direct replacement for Willock, Football League World's QPR fan pundit, Louis Moir, believes that a certain newly released Premier League striker could be an ideal free agent signing for the club this summer.

"I think that one player that's out there who's probably being linked with quite a few Championship clubs, is the ex-West Ham forward Divin Mubama," Louis told FLW.

"Obviously, he's still very young, and I think when he was at West Ham they rated him quite highly, but obviously it hasn't worked out, and he's probably at the stage where he needs to be playing football and getting regular minutes under his belt.

"We could potentially need two strikers depending on what happens with Sinclair Armstrong and Lyndon Dykes, so yeah, he's one that sort of intrigues me.

"He's obviously got ability and talent, and probably just hasn't been able to show it yet. Dropping down to the Championship would suit, and I think if he was to join QPR, it would be quite a good fit.

"The way we're moving forward with the way we want to play football, and the manager and the coaching has obviously all gone up to extremely high levels now, and he'd probably relish that.

"I do think there's a player in there, and he'd be one I'd be looking at. Not as the sort of new number nine and starting striker every week, but as an option, I think there could be a place for him in our squad.

"He looks an exciting talent, and I think he would fit in well and could potentially develop, and you never know, he could be one of them where you develop him on a free and sell in the future.

"So yeah, Divin Mubama for me, I'd be looking at him on a free."

If you can't take a chance on a free agent like Mubama, then there aren't many players that you could.

Still just a teenager, the England youth international made 18 first team appearances for the Hammers, since his breakthrough into the senior side back in the 2022/23 season.

The 19-year-old has already played six times in various UEFA European competitions, with his solitary West Ham goal coming in a Europa Conference League tie against AEK Larnaca back in March, 2023.

As Moir discussed, there's absolutely no reason why dropping down into the second tier will ignite his career once again, with the youngster clearly having the talent levels and potential to develop into a top-level striker in the future.

Now a free agent, Mubama is the type of player that has the feel of making a lot of clubs look very silly for not securing his signature in a couple of years, as whoever finds the right key to unlock his potential could be sitting on a goal mine.

QPR would have to pay compensation for Mubama, given he was offered a new deal by West Ham that he turned down multiple times, but any figure is likely going to be six figures up-front rather than a substantial seven-figure move.

QPR have a goalscoring problem that needs fixing

For all that Cifuentes improved QPR last season, one aspect of their squad that has plagued them for some time is the absence of a goalscorer.

Ilias Chair was able to take home the R's top scorer prize in 2023/24 with just seven league goals, and in 2022/23, that prize was won by Lyndon Dykes' eight goals.

In fact, since the club became a Championship club once again in 2015/16, no player has scored more goals in a single league season than current England international Ebere Eze's 14 in the 2019/20 campaign - per Transfermarkt.

Therefore, Mubama's frightening goalscoring record from his time in the Hammers' academy should immediately be of interest to QPR.

Mubama scored 30 times in 47 U18 Premier League matches, whilst also scoring 16 times in 30 Premier League 2 appearances, and a further 10 times in nine FA Youth Cup games - per Transfermarkt.

As such, if there is any Championship club that should be willing to take a chance on the former West Ham striker, it should be QPR.