Man United planning move for 25-year-old defensive midfielder with eight goals this season – originally posted on Sportslens.com
Manchester United are monitoring the performances of West Ham United midfielder Tomas Soucek ahead of a potential summer move for his signature, Football Insider reports.
Soucek joined the Hammers on an initial loan deal from Slavia Prague during the 2020 January transfer window before the deal was made permanent in the summer.
The Czech Republic international played a key role in the Hammers avoiding relegation last term as he contributed three goals from 13 games.
He has performed with the same consistency since joining them on a permanent deal and has eight goals from 25 appearances this term.
All of his contributions have come in the Premier League and he has proved a genuine goalscoring threat with his aerial presence in the box.
His displays seem to have grabbed the attention of Red Devils scouts and the club are said to be weighing up a possible approach to sign him this summer.
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Soucek has generally operated from the defensive midfield role but he has been equally efficient on either side of the pitch.
While he has been in fine scoring form, he has also been solid defensively with three clearances, two tackles and one interception per 90 minutes.
United are currently uncertain over the future of midfielder Paul Pogba, who will enter the final year of his contract in July this year.
There has been no progress in the negotiations and the club are likely to consider his exit if his future is not resolved by the end of the season.
Soucek has shown that he can be a box-to-box midfielder from his short time at West Ham and could be a quality addition for the Red Devils.
The 25-year-old does not have the star attraction of Pogba but has proved a game-changer from set-pieces for the Hammers, something which United have lacked.
Other than club-captain Harry Maguire, no one else from the squad has been able to provide a scoring threat from such situations with their physical presence.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com and Whoscored.com