Julen Lopetegui’s treatment of 23-year-old player could cost West Ham a midfield gem – opinion | OneFootball

One of the players West Ham United have been linked with is Jobe Bellingham, who is starring for Sunderland.

A report in the English media in November claimed that West Ham are among the clubs who are looking into a potential deal for Bellingham in the January transfer window.

Former England international midfielder Carlton Palmer has also heard that West Ham are keen on Bellingham, who is one of the best players for Sunderland.

The 19-year-old has scored three goals and given three assists in 18 Championship matches for the Black Cats so far this season. During the 2023-24 campaign, the teenager found the back of the net seven times and provided one assist in 45 appearances in the Championship.

While West Ham would love to sign Bellingham, the problem that the Hammers have is that they are going to struggle to convince the England Under-21 international midfielder to move to London Stadium.

The Hammers are not doing particularly well this season and are unlikely to get into Europe. Bellingham might want to join a club that at least have a realistic chance of playing in European competitions.

Another hindrance would be how Crysencio Summerville has fared at West Ham. Under Hammers manager Julen Lopetegui, Summerville has not had the impact that he would have hoped to since his move last summer. The 23-year-old has made only six starts in the Premier League for the Hammers this season. The winger has made nine further appearances as a substitute in the competition.

Summerville has scored one goal and given one assist in those games. In the 2023-24 campaign, the Dutch winger found the back of the net 21 times and gave 10 assists in 49 matches in all competitions for Leeds United.

Given that Bellingham is in demand and has interest from clubs other than West Ham, he might not be too keen on a move to the Hammers looking at how Summerville has fared. The winger struggled for weeks to get into Lopetegui’s starting line-up. Bellingham would surely want to get into a team and start games straightaway.