I think it’s fair to say that West Ham have not had the most inspired transfer window.

The Irons have brought in player sales exceeding £200 million but still have an extremely shallow squad and look to have moved too late for many of their summer transfer targets.

However, the Hammers have made some decent signings that already seem to be proving good value for money. The same can’t be said about some of the Irons’ previous transfer windows. Below are West Ham’s five worst summer transfer windows of the last fifteen years, since their last season in the Championship. Enjoy – or don’t.

5. Summer 2022

Bit of an odd one, this – Lucas Paquetá and Emerson played a huge role in the UEFA Conference League triumph of 2023 and became mainstays under David Moyes. Yes, Paquetá’s transfer broke the bank, but I think that pass in Prague to Jarrod Bowen was worth millions.

This was also the window where we signed Nayef Aguerd (oof), Gianluca Scamacca (ummm), Thilo Kehrer (no, he wasn’t pretty good) and Flynn Downes. A lot of money with very little return. Despite only being four years ago, only two signings from that window remain at the club – Alphonse Areola (who we had already been on loan the season prior) and *checks notes* Maxwel Cornet.

Dear oh dear.

4. Summer 2018

I feel bad putting this window on here because I’m weirdly nostalgic for it – and for Manuel Pellegrini’s first season as a whole, which was largely enjoyable. We brought in Łukasz Fabiański, a modern Hammers great, good start.

We also splashed the cash on players that started out well before they became hugely underwhelming. Felipe Anderson, Issa Diop, Fabián Balbuena and Andriy Yarmolenko were all superb at different points of that campaign. They had the odd moment after, but nothing special to justify the near €90 million spent on them. Then there’s Jack Wilshere and Carlos Sánchez – two of the worst to ever do it in a Hammers shirt.

I suppose Ryan Fredericks and Lucas Pérez were there too.

3. Summer 2019

Ooh boy, I have to take a deep breath before this one.

One word: Roberto. I think that says it all.

Also, two of the worst striker signings in modern Hammers history, for two different reasons. Sébastien Haller was decent, but my god, was he not worth £45 million. Then there’s Albian Ajeti, a striker so bad, he struggled at Celtic… CELTIC.

This window was such a disaster, but at least it gave us Pablo Fornals, a player I love so much that his acquisition alone automatically makes this window better than two others.

2. Summer 2016

The decision between the top two on this list was really tough. This window probably wasn’t the very worst – though, believe me, it was rancid – but it is probably the one that offends me the most.

Let me run some names by you: Simone Zaza, Jonathan Calleri, Gökhan Töre, Álvaro Arbeloa, Havard Nordtveit, Sofiane Feghouli (actually, I kinda liked him). When Arthur Masuaku is among your best signings, you know you’re in trouble. André Ayew became West Ham’s record signing, and apart from that night at Wembley against Spurs, he did very little and moaned a lot.

I suppose Manuel Lanzini’s transfer became permanent, but I don’t think that should count, as he had already been on loan the previous season.

I just can’t get over this window. You move to a big, new stadium after an excellent season with Dimitri Payet, one of the very best players in the world in your team, and the best you can do is Arthur Masuaku? We deserve everything we’ve gotten.

1. Summer 2024

In pop music criticism, I have come across a term called the “delayed flop”. It basically means a poor/mediocre album that is seen as a “success” purely based on hype and excitement, but one that proves to have no longevity, ultimately hurting the artist when they release their next album, the “actual flop”.

I don’t know if that makes sense, but essentially what I’m saying is that the 2025 summer transfer window didn’t relegate West Ham – the 2024 window did. There was real excitement when the 2024 window closed – some fans, neutrals included, even admitted that the Hammers had “won” the summer transfer window that year. Yikes.

Kilman for £40 million, Todibo for £40 million to be paid a year later, Niclas Füllkrug, League One Wes, Guido Rodríguez, around £20 million on an unknown Brazilian teenager who couldn’t get an academy game. Even Hammer of the Year Aaron Wan-Bissaka seems to have exited the club on very poor terms.

Crysencio Summerville at least came good in his final six months at the club, but spent most of his first season injured.

I don’t actually think someone like Todibo was as bad as Arbeloa, and Guilherme didn’t offend me as much as Töre, but the sheer money that was wasted and what followed makes this the worst recent West Ham window – and one of the worst of all time.