West Ham United's £10m flop signing tipped for January transfer window exit

The January transfer window is now open and West Ham United are wasting little time on the business end of things. One of their central defenders - Thilo Kehrer - is set for a move to Ligue 1 outfit AS Monaco.

This is according to journalist Fabrizio Romano, who reported the development on X (formerly Twitter). Additionally, Calciomercato also mentioned that he will leave on a loan transfer, as opposed to a permanent deal. Moreover, the deal is not believed to have any obligation to buy clauses included.

It seems that Kehrer does not factor into West Ham's immediate plans, but could still have a role to play for the club in the future. With 27 Germany caps under his belt, he certainly has stellar pedigree - but this has failed to translate into good performances this season.

Can West Ham afford to lose Thilo Kehrer?

This season, Kehrer has been little more than a fringe player for the Hammers. The £10m signing has played in just 12 games in all competitions this season, failing to score any goals or register any assists - on top of this, he also hasn't started in any Premier League games in 2023/24.

Instead, the Irons have generally preferred to play Kurt Zouma, Nayef Aguerd and Konstantinos Mavropanos over the German international - he seems to be David Moyes' fourth-choice centre-back as things stand, although he is above the aging Angelo Ogbonna in the pecking order.

As such, letting Kehrer leave the club on loan makes sense for all parties involved in the deal. At 27, Kehrer is on the cusp of his theoretical prime - additionally, having previously played in Ligue 1 for PSG, he knows what it takes to be a success in France's top division. Ideally, upon his return, he will be full of reinvigorated confidence and belief.