West Ham United have found themselves struggling in the Premier League this season with inconsistent performances and failure to see games out causing vulnerability for the east London side.

The Hammers are currently 16th in the league table and just one point clear of the relegation zone after 20 league outings having suffered the joint-second highest number of losses in the entire top flight, something David Moyes must improve instantly if the club are to have any hope of surviving a drop into the Championship.

Indeed, the club have recognised the pressing concern surrounding the inability to kill games with goals scored and snapped up the services of Danny Ings this week in hope that the former Aston Villa striker can find the back of the net consistently at the London Stadium over the second half of the season.

Moyes will certainly be feeling the pressure on his position leading the squad, however, after picking up three points in a clash dubbed 'El Sackico' with Everton yesterday it seems that the manager may be given more time to improve the performances in the upcoming fixtures ahead.

Not only that, the club are now preparing to lose Declan Rice in the summer with a number of Premier League clubs swarming with interest to sign the West Ham talisman this summer including Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea.

As a result, preparing a replacement to succeed the unplayable midfielder at the end of the season will be crucial in ensuring that the side doesn't suffer another relegation scrap should they survive this term.

One player who has been linked with a move to East London this week is Manchester United's defensive midfielder Scott McTominay after falling out of favour at his current club due to the arrival of Casemiro.

Popular club insider EXWHUEmployee has claimed via West Ham Central on Twitter that McTominay is being considered as the long-term replacement for the 24-year-old.

There is no doubt that the England international offers more quality and potential in the centre of the pitch than McTominay, however, the Scottish midfielder is a capable and realistic target for West Ham ahead of the summer.

When comparing the positional peers over their last full season the pair shared many close similarities in their output including goals scored (1 v 1), aerial duels won (60.9% v 66.3%), dribbles completed (69.4% v 76.6%), blocks (45 v 45), clearances (52 v 60) and progressive passes received (32 v 36).

Over 15 Premier League appearances this season, the 26-year-old - who was hailed a "leader" by Thierry Henry - has tallied up an 81% pass completion rate and successfully completed 67% of his dribbles, as well as averaging 1.3 tackles, 2.3 clearances and winning 3.5 duels per game - despite only averaging 50 minutes per performance.

With that being said, the signing of McTominay would give West Ham a Premier League-proven player to occupy the important role in midfield if Rice should exit in the summer and with regular game time with the Hammers, Moyes could potentially get the best from the player.