West Ham news: Do West Ham struggle to attract ‘big name’ players?

BBC Sport’s football reporters have been taking questions all day, including chief football news reporter Simon Stone.

Andy in Leeds asked: Given the size of our fan base and stadium, being a London club, and having recently won a European trophy, why do West Ham struggle to attract and afford bigger-name players? Is our board to blame for the way it runs things?

Simon answered: Hiya Andy. I am not sure what you mean by ‘big names’. West Ham spent a lot of money on Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta etc. What they can’t do is spend lots of money on players who are going to sit on the bench (they have spent a lot on players who ended up sitting on the bench but that is different).

West Ham did win a European trophy and under David Moyes qualified for Europe for three seasons in a row. But that was something they had never done before in their entire history – and in two of their last three seasons, they have finished 14th, which is around where they have tended to finish.

I have always felt there was potential for growth at West Ham – but competition in the Premier League is harder than its ever been. Newcastle and Aston Villa are similar sized clubs but have qualified for the Champions League under relatively new and hugely ambitious owners. West Ham have lost the momentum they had under Moyes. They can get it back under Graham Potter but it takes time.

Read more of the Q&A with our reporters