Charlie Austin has claimed both Tottenham and Arsenal will regret not pursuing a move to sign Kurt Zouma from Chelsea in the summer.
The French defender departed Stamford Bridge late into the transfer window after falling down the pecking order under Thomas Tuchel, making a switch across London to West Ham in a deal worth around £30 million.
Zouma, 27, has since established himself as a mainstay in the Hammers back line, making 11 appearances in the Premier League so far.
However, he will face an extended period on the sidelines after picking up a hamstring injury in West Ham’s 3-2 win against his former side.
Meanwhile, Tottenham made a centre-back acquisition of their own in the summer by signing Cristian Romero on loan with a £42 million option to buy, while Arsenal poached Ben White from Brighton in a £50 million deal.
Although both have settled in well and found their feet at their North London counterparts, Austin feels both sides could regret not making their own pushes to sign Zouma.
He said on talkSPORT: “Zouma is definitely up there [with the Premier League signings of the season so far].
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“Other clubs are looking at it and thinking: ‘We should have went for him’. Spurs, Arsenal – they are. [Chelsea only let him go] because they have better players.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Zouma has had a good impact at West Ham since his arrival, but it is a little early to be saying that Spurs and Arsenal will regret not signing him. Both clubs have signed centre-backs of their own and both could exceed Zouma at some point in the near future.
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