Question marks will have understandably been raised amongst West Ham fans following reports yesterday that Reece Oxford will spend another season on-loan rather than making an impact in the Hammers first-team, in a period where the Hammers need defensive reinforcements.

West Ham struggled defensively last season and their ageing back-line needs rejuvenating this summer, with many believing that handing opportunities to young duo Reece Oxford and Reece Burke would be the right call for Slaven Bilic’s side.

However, it seems the Croatian boss has different plans for his defence next season as the BBC has confirmed that Oxford is set to spend the next season on-loan in the Bundesliga with Borussia Monchengladbach.

The 18-year-old spent five months on-loan with Reading last season, helping the Royals reach the Championship play-offs, and a move to Germany will significantly aid his development ahead of a crucial few years for the young player.

West Ham fans can take comfort in the fact that Gladbach have recent history developing young Premier League defenders, with Chelsea’s Andreas Christensen excelling during his past few years on-loan with the German outfit.

Gladbach endured a difficult season last term as the Champions League side failed to secure a spot in European football for the forthcoming season, which means they’ll be focusing fully on their domestic campaign- fighting the likes of Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzeig and Hoffenheim for a spot in the top-four.

The experience of fighting in the top-end of a top European league will certainly provide a huge boost to Oxford’s development and it can provide a big impact for when the English defender returns to the Premier League- and there’s even a possibility that he could spend another year with Gladbach.

All in all though, it comes down to whether West Ham make the significant defensive additions they need to their back-line which show that loaning Oxford out was the right decision as there is always the possibility that the Hammers could have utilised the young defender.

Slaven Bilic is now under pressure to make the right sort of additions to his defensive line to reinforce the Hammers defence ahead of the new season, allowing for a solid set-up to be established for Oxford to force his way into in a year’s time when he returns from Germany.