OPINION
Offloading players to some of your closest league rivals is never a good thing, especially if they are young and have the potential to be a rather talented individual.
That is exactly what West Ham have done according to a tweet from Tom Roddy, who is a sports reporter for the Sun. The Hammers have let Rosaire Longelo leave the club in favour of a move to the Newcastle, after he passed a medical at the club.
#nufc have signed 18-year-old winger Rosaire Longelo on a four-year deal from #whufc. Passed medical today.
— Tom Roddy (@TomRoddy_) July 27, 2018
A very small minority of Hammers’ fans will not have heard of winger Longelo unless they follow the club at under-18 level, but it is a decision by the club that could prove to be the wrong one in the foreseeable future.
The promising youngster represented the club in the Under-18 Premier League, netting three goals in 14 appearances – an adequate tally for a player who usually operates as a left-back.
The teen ace is highly versatile, and can play in both the left-back and left-winger roles – the latter being a position in which he is able to score his goals from.
That tally can only increase as he progresses through his playing a career, and the Magpies have taken advantage of this at a pivotal time in his footballing life – and they are only going to experience him at his full potential in a few years’ time.
Seeing Longelo performing at a high standard for United will only turn the Irons green with envy, as they regret the day that they let Longelo exit their club – but what will be their loss will obviously be Newcastle’s gain.
If West Ham kept him amongst their ranks, they could have guided him into being an established left-back for them, but the choice to let him go has undoubtedly been clouded by the number of signings that they have brought in.
The Hammers will rue the day he left – but it is now his opportunity to show them what they are missing.
