£20m player suggests he’s not bothered about missing out on move to West Ham

Perhaps yesterday’s disappointing result already demonstrates West Ham United’s shortcomings towards the end of January.

David Moyes’ side continued their excellent work from the summer recruiting Kalvin Phillips on loan, but business from there on was quite perplexing.

With the likes of Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus missing recently, West Ham’s lack of squad depth was laid bare.

It quickly became clear that the likes of Said Benrahma and Pablo Fornals were not best placed to substitute for the players mentioned, or for Jarrod Bowen for that matter.

Upgrading on the pair made sense in January, but offloading both without a replacement really did not.

It seemed as if West Ham had their targets towards the end of January, but simply couldn’t finalise a move.

Sunderland’s Jack Clarke was often linked with the side throughout the window, a player now thriving in the Championship.

The £20m-rated winger was thought to be a player David Moyes really liked, a chance to repeat the Bowen success story when buying from the division below.

However, Clarke has actually now suggested he’s not too fussed a deal didn’t come to fruition.

Jack Clarke not bothered West ham move didn’t materialise towards end of January

Clarke was speaking after Sunderland’s 1-1 draw with Middlesborough yesterday, a game in which he provided an assist.

And when discussing his Sunderland future and the speculation last month with the Sky Sports crew, Clarke said he was happy right where he is.

Clarke said: “Honestly, I’m happy to be here, and I’m still enjoying every minute in a Sunderland shirt and for me, the stuff that gets said on the outside doesn’t seem to bother me.

“As long as I’m coming in every day and wearing a Sunderland shirt I’m happy.”

Of course, you would expect Clarke to be fully invested in his current club’s vision, it didn’t seem as if a move came close.

And perhaps Moyes would actually be fond of those words, demonstrating his commitment, if he’s still considering a future move.

But with Ben Johnson deployed at right-wing for West Ham yesterday, it tells a story – an opportunity was missed towards the end of January.

That being said, it was one individual performance which proved costly yesterday.