West Ham must sign strong leaders if they are to bounce back next season.

The past three consecutive Summers have seen West Ham lose a captain. First Mark Noble retired, then Declan Rice left, followed by Kurt Zouma. While Jarrod Bowen is highly unlikely to leave, a good amount of the core leaders of the squad could be on their way out.

Both Aaron Cresswell and Vladimir Coufal will be released at the end of their contracts, two massive vocal points in the dressing room. Alongside them, Soucek, Alvarez, and Antonio could all be leaving. This is without mentioning the likes of Ogbonna and Dawson who have departed in recent years.

Although it was certainly an issue over the past year, the lack of leaders in the squad could become a massive problem if not addressed this Summer.

Age will be an important factor for Graham Potter, as having the oldest squad in the league is not something he’s happy with, but this shouldn’t come at the sacrifice of experience.

It’s a hard balance to strike, but having those vocal voices on and off the pitch is more important than anything else.