West Ham keen on 23y/o ace who has been labelled ‘incredible’ by Pep Guardiola – report | OneFootball

West Ham United are keeping a close eye on Southampton defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis ahead of a potential summer swoop.

According to talkSPORT, the Hammers are weighing up the possibility of snapping him up, with the English defender poised to leave Southampton if they are relegated back to the Championship.

The 23-year-old has been a regular feature for Southampton since joining from Manchester City in the summer of 2024.

His performances for Southampton earned him his first England cap against Ireland back in November, and he repaid the manager’s faith by scoring on his international debut, helping England to a 5-0 win.

Harwood-Bellis is highly rated in England, and with Southampton sitting rock bottom of the Premier League, his future at Saint Mary’s Stadium is far from guaranteed.

The former Man City academy graduate has made 74 appearances for Southampton, returning five goals and four assists.

He has gained valuable experience with loan spells at Blackburn Rovers, Stoke City, Burnley, and a stint in Belgium with Anderlecht.

West Ham are on the market for defensive reinforcement, and they see Harwood-Bellis as an ideal target.

The Hammers are struggling to keep things tight at the back, shipping in an alarming 47 goals so far this season.

They want to bolster their options at the back with Harwood-Bellis but will face serious competition from Premier League rivals Crystal Palace.

Harwood-Bellis isn’t the answer to West Ham’s defensive woes

Harwood-Bellis is hardly the kind of addition that will get West Ham fans off their seat.

He’s not an improvement on Graham Potter’s current options, and West Ham should be aiming for a more experienced defender.

The England international has helped Southampton keep two clean sheets in 24 Premier League games, but his underlying stats are even more woeful.

Harwood-Bellis has won just 48% of his ground duels and has committed four errors leading to goal this season.

City manager Pep Guardiola believes Harwood-Bellis has ‘incredible‘ potential.

However, he has struggled to live up to expectations at Southampton and snapping him up would be a huge gamble for West Ham.

Stats from Sofascore.com