Flynn Downes departed West Ham in the summer, leaving Hammers fans with mixed feelings. He was voted Southampton’s Southern Daily Echo Player of the Year during his loan spell last season, standing out as their top performer.
Lopetegui felt he had enough competition in central midfield to part with the boyhood Hammers fan.
In came Argentine World Cup winner, Guido Rodriguez, on a free transfer from Real Betis, signing a one-year contract worth £75k a week. Edson Alvarez also cemented his place and is reportedly earning £100k a week, while Tomas Soucek provides another option for the Hammers and allegedly banks £90k a week.
From a PSR perspective, West Ham paid Swansea City £9m with clauses to reach £14m when they bought Downes in 2022. They received a transfer fee from the Saints of around £18m in July 2024. His salary at West Ham was reportedly £25k a week.
I thought it would be worth looking at some stats to see how Downes compares to the three players Lopetegui favoured going into the 2024-2025 season.
Downes the running machine
No player in the Premier League has covered more distance than Flynn Downes, who has logged 84.2km in 630 minutes. Alvarez, Soucek, and Rodriguez do not feature in the top twenty, though I should note that the figures favour players who have played the most minutes.
In terms of pass completion, Downes leads with 92.34%, compared to Rodriguez at 83.43%, Alvarez at 82.68%, and Soucek at 79.51%. He ranks 4th among midfielders with 561 passes. Rodriguez is 24th with 350 passes, Alvarez is 60th with 226, and Soucek 65th with 205.
Downes also excels in touches, ranking fifth for his position in the Premier League with 706. Rodriguez ranks 35th with 455 touches, Soucek 65th with 299, and Alvarez 66th with 298.
For tackles, Rodriguez leads, ranking 10th among midfielders with 25 tackles. Downes isn’t far behind with 23 tackles, tied for 15th. Soucek has 12 tackles (44th position), and Alvarez is tied for 51st with 11 tackles.
In aerial interceptions, Soucek leads with 26, while Downes has 8, Rodriguez 7, and Alvarez 6.
It’s still early in the season, and while the Hammers are struggling, Downes is playing for a team sitting 19th with a -12 goal difference and only 4 points. Yet, his individual performances and stats support the view that West Ham may have been too hasty in releasing a player who wanted to stay and fight for his place at the London Stadium.
Only time will tell, and it will be interesting to see how the data stacks up by the season’s end.
