West Ham’s David Moyes reveals near signing of Cole Palmer before Chelsea coup

West Ham boss David Moyes has spoken of how tantalizingly close the club’s pursuit was of Cole Palmer last summer, Soccernet.football reports.

The former Everton boss also hinted on how the collapse of Lucas Paqueta’s Manchester City move influenced the Hammers’ loss in the race for the English sensation.

During last year’s summer transfer window, Moyes engaged in discussions with Manchester City as Palmer’s exit loomed, only to be outmaneuvered by Chelsea, where the 21-year-old has since thrived, netting an impressive 20 Premier League goals this season.

Simultaneously, Manchester City neared an £80 million deal for Paqueta, abruptly withdrawing amidst FA investigations into potential betting infringements.

As Moyes prepares to lead his West Ham contingent to Stamford Bridge this Sunday, Palmer now stands as a pivotal figure, yet the manager acknowledges that fate could have taken a different turn last summer.

“We were close, close,” Moyes affirmed. “You can probably imagine the other part of it, where there was a possibility of somebody leaving here which might have made that work. I was in regular contact with his agent and we were well on the road with it but it just changed at the end and we couldn’t do it.”

Palmer had gradually emerged as one of English football’s most promising talents at City, signaling his desire for regular first-team action to Pep Guardiola last summer.

Nonetheless, his meteoric rise this season has surpassed expectations, with the winger trailing Erling Haaland by just one goal in the Golden Boot race and firmly vying for a spot in Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad, where ironically, West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen stands as one of his primary competitors.

“I watched him playing for England U21s regularly and I thought he was their standout player,” remarked Moyes. “I was always keen to bring in British players. The bigger problem was that he played in the same position as Jarrod Bowen but I had the thought about Jarrod becoming a centre-forward.

“Lee Carsley, who was one of my ex-players [at Everton] as well and the England U21 manager, was always giving me advice on their players and Cole especially.

“He spoke so highly about him and what he was like. We knew he could play several positions and let’s be fair, he’s been a revelation this year for Chelsea.”

Palmer has undoubtedly been the shining light amid Chelsea’s somewhat inconsistent campaign.