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da apostebet： Reece Oxford could complete a permanent move to Augsburg with the German club close to agreeing a deal in principle with West Ham, according to Sky Sports News.
What’s the word, then?
The 20 year-old is set to sign in a deal potentially worth up to £8m with the German club, where he’s spent the current season on loan.
Personal terms haven’t been agreed yet but he’s due to sign permanently in what is his third Bundesliga loan spell for his second German club after making his debut for West Ham at 16 years of age.
He’s not been a regular for the club despite his brilliant debut, though he has made six appearances this season for Augsburg, he’s an England U20 regular and has enjoyed two previous spells at Borussia Monchengladbach as well.
Rice seals his fate
Oxford announced himself as a 16-year-old with a stellar debut performance at the Emirates on the opening day of the 2015-16 season. Slaven Bilic put his faith in the youngster, but the Englishman has struggled for appearances since then, with his last for the club coming in October 2016.
Despite Oxford struggling for opportunities, the youngster had time on his side having made his first appearance at such a tender age. Three loan moves later, and many hoped that at the age of 20, Oxford would now be ready to fight for a starting berth next season.
However, the door to a starting place seems firmly shut after the emergence of England international Declan Rice. Manuel Pellegrini has used Rice religiously in the heart of the Hammers midfield and the England man has looked composed, tenacious and combative in the middle of the park.
Oxford offers a similar proposition to Rice, a player who operates in both central midfield and centre-back positions. Whilst Oxford is predominantly a centre-back over a midfielder, any opportunity to break into the West Ham XI has been made all the more difficult by Rice’s emergence and adaptation to a new role under Pellegrini.
That has only been compounded by the summer arrivals of Fabian Balbuena and Issa Diop, the latter being just 22 years of age himself. The chances of Pellegrini giving opportunities to so many young players in central, defensive positions was always going to be small.
Oxford’s development will be away from West Ham now, with his proposed move to Augsburg and the Bundesliga looking like the best path for his career. Many, though, will surely wonder what could have been if Rice hadn’t developed into such an important asset for Pellegrini – leaving a gap in West Ham’s first-team squad for a promising young defensive player to flourish.