Vladimir Coufal, a defender for West Ham, has disclosed that he declined a transfer to Bayer Leverkusen in January. The right-back from the Czech Republic has made 107 appearances for the club since joining from Slavia Prague in 2020 and has consistently performed well.
The 30-year-old came back into the lineup earlier this year after being benched for a few games before the end of 2022, and he significantly contributed to his team avoiding relegation and reaching the Europa Conference League final in his native country. That might not have happened if Coufal had chosen to leave the London Stadium when Bayer Leverkusen arrived, but he made the decision to stay in East London despite having discussions with the German powerhouses.
Before the Europa Conference League final, Coufal said in an interview with Football.London: “It was a trying moment for me since everyone wants to be on the pitch and I’m no exception.
“I wanted to move if I felt I wasn’t required. However, it wasn’t at the point where I should move. After the break, I spoke with the manager and he gave me some advice that I felt was appropriate for me. I opted not to pursue a move and I now believe that this was a wise choice.
Except for my injuries, I had a really excellent second half of the season. The season should end with a trophy, hopefully.
“My intention wasn’t to leave the club, I just want to be on the pitch. I love to be here, I love to play at the London Stadium. When you put it like this, it was a great decision to stay here at the club and to lift the trophy could be perfect for me, for all of West Ham. Now we can imagine how it’s going to be when we win.” Loyal
West Ham’s fortunes have turned around dramatically since Coufal and his compatriot Tomas Soucek arrived at the club, having qualified for European football in both of the full seasons the pair have spent at the London Stadium.
There was a time towards the back of last year when the Czech wasn’t featuring as much as he would’ve liked, but he showed great character to come back and prove his worth by starting in 17 of the last 23 Premier League games.
His reliability, tireless enthusiasm and love for a tackle has really endeared him to Hammers fans over the past few years and he would’ve been a big loss to the club had he left in January.
It’s clear he loves being at West Ham as much as we have grown to love having him around the place, so it would be great to see his loyalty be rewarded by winning the Europa Conference League in his homeland.
