West Ham loan James Ward-Prowse to Burnley and sign Adama Traoré

West Ham have agreed to send James Ward-Prowse on loan to Burnley, with the midfielder undergoing a medical as he prepares to spend the rest of the season at Turf Moor, and the club confirmed the arrival of Adama Traoré from Fulham for a small undisclosed fee. Ward-Prowse has been out of favour at West Ham since Nuno Espírito Santo was appointed manager last September; he was cut from the first-team squad and has not featured under Nuno.

He experienced a similar situation during a loan at Nottingham Forest last season, when he quickly dropped out of Nuno’s plans at the City Ground and was sent back to West Ham early. Nuno included Ward-Prowse in a matchday squad for West Ham’s win over Sunderland last Saturday, but sources said that was not viewed as a U-turn.

Sources pointed out a bench space had to be filled after West Ham agreed to let Guido Rodríguez join Valencia the night before the Sunderland game, and it was too late to add an academy player because the Under-21s had played on Friday. Burnley hope Ward-Prowse, a £30m West Ham signing from Southampton in 2023, can help in their relegation fight.

West Ham also confirmed the signing of 30-year-old winger Adama Traoré until June for a small undisclosed fee. Nuno, who worked with Traoré at Wolves, said: "Adama is someone who knows the Premier League very well, and his qualities – both as a player and a person – will help us between now and the end of the season.

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