Why Bournemouth must plot a summer swoop for West Ham’s Josh Cullen
According to Daily Mail, Bournemouth are among a host of English clubs interested in signing West Ham midfielder Josh Cullen.
Josh Cullen is currently on loan at Championship outfit Charlton Athletic for the second consecutive season having helped them clinch promotion via play-offs last term. He has impressed in Charlton Athletic’s midfield, scoring and assisting a goal apiece in 25 appearances.
The 23-year-old’s performances in the Championship haven’t gone unnoticed, with Norwich City, West Brom and Leeds United all keeping tabs on the player, the report adds. Amidst mounting interest, West Ham have activated an option to extend Cullen’s stay by a further year to 2021.
Meanwhile, Bournemouth have endured a torrid season in the Premier League and are battling relegation. They have won just once in their last five games and remain in real danger of getting relegated with nine games remaining in the season.
The Cherries failed to bring in new players in January, meaning Eddie Howe is currently managing with the squad he had at the start of the 2019/20 campaign. Howe faces an uphill task of retaining the club’s top-flight status and that should then help Bournemouth in attracting good talents across the continent during the summer transfer window.
Howe has taken a few years to build an exciting Bournemouth team that consists of experienced players such as Callum Wilson, Josh King, Ryan Fraser and Nathan Ake etc. Over the years, the 42-year-old tactician has promoted young talents at the Vitality Stadium, as evident this season as well, with the blooding of on-loan Harry Wilson, Jack Simpson, Aaron Ramsdale and Jack Stacey.
Having said that, a talent like Josh Cullen could be a good fit at Bournemouth. After making his debut for West Ham during the 2015/16 season, he has played nine times for them, including three outings in the Premier League. He has also previously spent time on loan at Bradford City and Bolton Wanderers.
Cullen spent the last season as well with Charlton and helped the club achieve promotion to the Championship. He registered four assists and scored just once last season, as the Addicks were promoted via the play-offs. This term, the midfielder has remained as one of Charlton’s key players.
The 23-year-old has also made two appearances for Ireland, most recently in November’s friendly victory over New Zealand, having made his Ireland debut against Bulgaria two months earlier. Cullen is expected to be a part of Mick McCarthy’s squad for their upcoming Euro 2020 play-off against Slovakia.
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Talented and with plenty of room for improvement in the years to come, the Ireland international has shown his ability to perform in the Championship and would be a valuable asset to Bournemouth if he is able to replicate the same form he has shown at the Valley in the last two seasons. Cullen’s massive potential means the 23-year-old could well prove to be a long-term investment for the Cherries.
Verdict
Hence, Howe must look to sign Cullen in the summer and bolster his team’s midfield unit ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.
