Next Man City move leaked by Fabrizio Romano after signing of defender West Ham let go

Fabrizio Romano has shared a picture of Baptiste signing his contract with Manchester City via his Twitter account, after already confirming the move was to be expected.

Clubs can still register free agents even if the transfer window was closed as of Friday night at 11 p.m. Consequently, after being fired by West Ham, Baptiste was allowed to go up with Man City.

He will not, however, join Pep Guardiola’s team right away. He will be loaned out to Lommel, a team that is a part of the City Group, as Romano has stated.

Lommel, who compete in Belgium’s second division, will be looking to give Baptiste a platform from which to advance in his career.

The length of the contract Baptiste will sign with Man City is still unknown. Despite the photographs being in circulation, the club has yet to formally confirm the transaction.

Baptiste had made two appearances for West Ham at the senior level, but neither of them was in the Premier League.

He is a defender who is 19 years old and has played for England at the under-16, under-17, and under-19 levels. He has the potential to be beneficial to Man City in the long run.

Guardiola will still rely on players like Ruben Dias, John Stones, Manuel Akanji, Nathan Ake, and summer acquisition Josko Gvardiol for the time being, though.

On Saturday, they defeated Fulham 5-1, with Ake contributing one of the goals.

READ ALSO:

West Ham plot second free signing after former Man Utd dynamo, as quadruple failure prompts change of plan

West Ham United is still searching for two new players despite the transfer window closing.

Since teams can still sign free agents outside of the transfer window, West Ham now intends to use this option to address some of the roster’s remaining gaps. According to Football Insider, two trades in that sense seem plausible.

The source claims that Jesse Lingard recently worked out with the team and could soon get a contract offer from them. After being released by Nottingham Forest at the conclusion of the previous season, he might start a second term with West Ham.

READ ALSO:

Paul Merson shares ridiculous verdict on West Ham United star James Ward-Prowse

James Ward-Prowse’s exclusion from the England team has been dubbed “ridiculous” by Paul Merson due to his strong start to the season for West Ham.

Despite the Irons midfielder’s stellar performance since moving to the London Stadium, Three Lions manager Gareth Southgate decided not to include him in their team for matches against Scotland and Ukraine. Instead, Southgate picked Kalvin Phillips and Jordan Henderson.

Merson and Michael Dawson were both taken aback by Southgate’s decision to bench the 28-year-old for the September games, especially in light of Phillips’ scant playing time thus far.

On Saturday, September 2, Dawson commented on Sky Sports Soccer: “I look at James Ward-Prowse in there and wonder is Kalvin Phillips playing? No. Jordan Henderson, who I believe to be the biggest, departed to move to Saudi Arabia. He must be perplexed as to why he isn’t in a squad.

“He’s always one that probably gets the call going keep doing what you’re doing but he’s been doing this for a really long time. I feel for him that he misses of because of probably Kalvin Phillips. We all know what Gareth is, he’s very very loyal to his players that have been tried and trusted for him and never let him down.”

Paul Merson quickly added that he thought the midfielder’s exclusion was “ridiculous.”

What more can he do?

It must be incredibly frustrating for Ward-Prowse to see players who are barely stepping foot on a pitch for their club sides constantly pip him to England action as it genuinely feels like there is little more he can do to catch Southgate’s eye.

But from a selfish point of view, the Hammers may not mind the fact their new midfield signing will get a couple of weeks off and a bit of a rest so early in the season as it massively reduces the chance of him picking up an injury during the international break.

Additionally, it gives David Moyes the chance to spend a little more time working with the midfielder in the gym after he missed part of the Hammers’ preseason as they finalized the deal to sign him from Southampton.

There hasn’t been any indication thus far this season that Ward-Prowse is still clicking with his new East London team, and if he keeps up his current pace, he will undoubtedly be on Southgate’s radar for the October international break.

On deadline day, West Ham launched a last-minute bid to recruit a new striker.