According to media reports from London, James Ward Prowse is being deemed surplus to requirements at West Ham and could be allowed to leave this summer, but will Southampton be one of those queueing up.

southamptonfcnews are reporting that James Ward Prowse will be allowed to leave the London Stadium this summer.

Ward Prowse left Saints just over a year ago for around £30 million as he sought to boost his chances of playing for England in the Euros.

It would be churlish to suggest that last season did not go well for JWP at the Hammers, he started 34 of the 38 Premier League games, plus another 3 off the bench, the only game he missed was the opening Premier League fixture for the East London club, having only just signed.

But this season he finds himself under a different manager after the departure of David Moyes and it seems that new boss Julen Lopetegui, does not really fancy him, Ward Prowse had to sit out all but the final 16 minutes on the bench in the Hammers 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa.

So what next for James Ward Prowse, will he be content as it seems Danny Ings is, to be a fringe player but keep his high salary or will he want to play football.

Turning 30 in November and under contract to West Ham for another 3 years, I would imagine he would find it difficult to find another club willing to pay a big fee for him and match his current salary, so a loan option could be in the offing.

So the big question is whether Saints should be in for James Ward Prowse, personally I would say yes, we should consider getting him in on loan, although we had plenty of the ball on Saturday at Newcastle, we struggled to create clear cut chances against a side parking the bus, we need someone who can deliver the ball, both from set pieces and in open play.

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Colburn added 13:28 - Aug 20 Personally I would say ‘no’. He lacks strength, pace and height. And he doesn’t score free kicks anymore. Tbh he didn’t look that strong in the Championship last year before we sold him. Much rather get a fresh face in
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derbydog added 13:36 - Aug 20 that fresh face is called Flynn Downes
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ElSanto added 13:48 - Aug 20 Yes, for his character alone. We are oversubscribed in midfield now if we get Mateus in, but I think he could be a real asset around the squad. Maybe he would be happy enough to play a role like Lallana now. I think he will 100% go into coaching or managing, so it could be a good move for him. We would just have to be careful we don't spend too much on wages.
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saintmark1976 added 14:00 - Aug 20 Absolutely bring him back, he can play in goal.
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HythePeer added 14:59 - Aug 20 "...personally I would say yes"....🤦🏻‍♂️
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Jesus_02 added 15:09 - Aug 20 Followed saints pattern , had a couple of decent seasons and then we sold him. Felt like we waited for ever for him to have a couple of decent seasons. Too much sideways passing IMO
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saint_ben added 15:11 - Aug 20 No thanks, for me in the prem season we went down I don’t think he did his job as captain well enough. The young players we signed that season needed someone like Prowse the captain to lead and help them but for me he didn’t do that. I was probably one of the only supporters saying we need to sell him. For me we have a better player now in Flynn Downes. So let’s forget Prowse and move onto a keeper that can fit in to the way we play.

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SaintPaulVW added 15:27 - Aug 20 Where does he actually fit in our first team? Played as a DM but better as an attacking midfielder but we have several of those. Surely it's just the same old JWP conundrum good player but we don't know what his best position is,?
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JoeEgg added 15:31 - Aug 20 Its been coming - he lost his place and favour with the West Ham fans. Can he play in goal?
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ElSanto added 15:34 - Aug 20 BTW I was saying we loan him (if wages are subsidised) and see if it works out for a cut price deal in the future. West Ham probably won't allow that, though. Can see him being hard to shift - West Ham had a shocker.
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underweststand added 15:47 - Aug 20 Better left alone. A bit of a downer for him to suddenly come back. He was a great servant to the club and leaves good memories. Those who criticise him should find the You Tube clip with all his free kicks ..OK so he didn't beat Beckham's record but he DAJFU in several roles yet was ignored by an England manager who praised him to the skies when his U23 captain, but was afraid to upset " the experts" and drop some of the media favourites . I really don't think the England midfield was so much better without him. In one of his last Wham games, Prowsey scored direct from a corner and gave an assist. Moyes understood his potential but WHam ditched him after he won their first trophy in an age, now they have a new manager and deserve everything that goes wrong. JWP won't get much game time but I hope (like Ings) he gets the most out of his contract.

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onetowatch added 15:59 - Aug 20 It has to be a resounding 'NO". The season we went down I stated that he is without doubt the easiest CM player to play against in the PL. He has a great engine, but no pace, and never makes a tackle in time. This would be a massive backward step. FD in every area, is a far better player
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WestSussexSaint added 21:28 - Aug 20 I like the guy and always gave his all for Saints even though at times it felt he was trying to do too much in a poor side and compromising his performances as a result. If a deal could be struck which makes financial sense for Saints then I think he could play a role in the squad. However i simply cannot see how the financials work.West Ham are likely to want to recoup a decent chuck of the fee they paid, probably £15-20m and his wages will be much higher than those he was on at Saints as our highest paid player. That’s too rich for Saints when we have higher priorities such as goalkeeper. Good luck to him but a return would be mainly driven by nostalgia which isn’t what we need right now.

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YosemiteSaint added 01:17 - Aug 21 Dunno if i agree with naysayers here. The old JWP wouldn't be the one returning, of course. But we might expect his work-rate, dead-ball efforts, and leadership. For me, however, if he's still got the legs he can put in a shift _off_ the ball. (His rivalry with Wilfred Zaha, how he could mark that guy right out of the game, comes to mind.) So I say that if he can be got on the cheap, he _should_ be got. He won't marshal the midfield again. But he'd be a huge shot in the arm.

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andoverpedro added 12:39 - Aug 21 have him on loan great alongside downes if anyone injured butwouldnt pay a fee or straight swap for Alcaraz
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