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Director makes Rav van den Berg admission ahead of potential January West Ham move
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- Director makes Rav van den Berg admission ahead of potential January West Ham move
Rav van den Berg may have only just surged up West Ham United's list of priorities for the January transfer window.
The centre-back has been linked with a move to the London Stadium, with his time at FC Koln not going as planned.
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The 22-year-old made the move to Germany after completing an £11million switch from Middlesbrough in 2025, but only made 14 appearances last season.
Van den Berg has yet to play a single minute this season, and faced another setback after his latest muscle injury problem.
The defender is said to be unhappy with his current situation with Koln, as Nuno Espirito Santo could soon offer him a new home in E20.
Konstantinos Mavropanos' latest injury worry may mean that West Ham put their foot on the accelerator for van den Berg, especially after the latest noise coming from Koln.
Director speaks out as discussions over Rav van den Berg's future likely
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West Ham are keen on a winter move for van den Berg , having already declared their interest in the summer.
Koln had been holding out for up to £17million in the summer, but with the young defender's form yet to turn around, his value is expected to have dropped.
The Netherlands U21s star is growing increasingly frustrated by his chances under current Koln boss Rene Wagner, and a return to England is looking more likely by the day,
Sport BILD's print edition on Wednesday revealed that Koln's sporting director Thomas Kessler had initially planned to sign van den Berg to eventually sell him on to a Premier League side for significant profit in the future.
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The plan is "on hold" with the player now the fourth-choice centre-back.
Kessler's latest comments have been revealed: "If there is no fundamental change in his sporting situation by the winter, we will, of course, sit down with him and his agency and have an open discussion about which future would make the most sense for everyone involved."
It's said that even if a move was a loan or a permanent move, Kessler would still have to recruit a replacement to ensure his manager has enough centre-back depth for the rest of the season.
Everything Michael Carrick has said about West Ham January target Rav van den Berg What are van den Berg's best stats in the Championship?
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There are big question marks over Mavropanos' current injury, and whether he will even stay with the Hammers beyond the January window.
Van den Berg enjoyed a successful first season in England with Middlesbrough, winning the club's Player of the Season award for the 2023-24 campaign.
While he suffered along with other Boro players the following season, when Michael Carrick was eventually sacked, West Ham may be attracted by what was seen in the 2023-24 campaign.
The defender won 65.7 per cent of his aerial duels that season, making 6.47 defensive actions per 90.
He was only dribbled past 0.53 times per match, which is essentially once every other game, and even if he did get beaten, he had the pace to recover.
Perhaps he could be an ideal replacement for Mavropanos or someone else for Nuno.
