PSG will make massive bid for Dimitri Payet – West Ham should consider selling
PSG need the star power of Dimitri Payet
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Dimitri Payet has thrown a tantrum and now refuses to play football for West Ham. There’s really only one logical solution for this transfer crisis. PSG must swoop in and make the Hammers and offer they can’t refuse.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, West Ham boss Slaven Bilic informed the press of Payet’s refusal to play for the club this morning. For the record, Bilic was also adamant that the club won’t be pressured into selling Payet despite his antics.
Evidently, the straw that broke the camel’s back was West Ham’s refusal to accept an offer of just under £20 million to send Payet back to Marseille. The Ligue 1 club haven’t tapped up Payet through any inappropriate means, but the Frenchman still wanted to return to his old stomping grounds. Evidently his displeasure was so great that he told Bilic he won’t play for West Ham again.
You can’t blame West Ham for doing everything they can to hold on to Payet. They handed him a massive contract last year and have attempted to build their team around him. Unfortunately, it hasn’t worked. The club are currently trodding along at an uninspiring 13th position in the Premier League table.
The club’s struggles are certainly the main reason Payet wants to leave. He’s not stupid, he understand the club have failed to build on last year’s success. Payet also understands that Slaven Bilic’s days at the club might be numbered.
More from Playing for 90
- Alexia Putellas reaches 400 games with Barcelona
- Everything you need to know ahead of the 250th ‘Super Clásico’
- Barcelona put five past Real Betis
- Manchester City suffer but come away with win over West Ham
- Baffling Liga MX ruling strips Puebla of a hard-earned victory
Of course, that doesn’t mean that going on strike was the right answer. Payet certainly has the right to agitate for a move behind closed doors, but he still has a job to do on the pitch. He’s paid entirely too much money to quit on his club and teammates.
That leaves West Ham in a pretty horrible situation. Bilic has boxed the club into a corner by asserting that Payet won’t be sold at any price. The current reality means that West Ham, a bad Premier League side, will now be plunged further down the Premier League table without their best player. That’s far from an ideal scenario.
PSG are the only club that have the motivation, and the financial resources to get Payet and West Ham out of this sticky situation. The French giants are a disappointing third in Ligue 1 at the moment. They’ve already added Julian Draxler this January, but they still could use some more attacking talent to help them catch Nice.
Perhaps more importantly, PSG are still searching for a big name to replace Zlatan Ibrahimovic as the face of the club. Payet certainly doesn’t have that type of worldwide reputation, but he is a French international. That might help him serve as the face of PSG moving forward.
Next: Has Zlatan conquered the Premier League?
It’s not a move without significant risk for PSG, but they need to be bold if they are going to remain relevant in Europe. Making a massive bid to convince West Ham to part with Dimitri Payet might be just the cure for what ails the French giants.