West Ham United have officially completed the signing of centre forward Lucas Perez from Premier League rivals Arsenal.
The club announced the news on their official website, stating that the 29-year-old has signed a three-year contract at the London Stadium.
The Spaniard joined Arsenal from Deportivo in 2016 after scoring 16 goals for the Spanish side in the previous season. However he was never given a real chance at the Emirates Stadium and was sent back to Depor last year, where he scored nine goals and set up a further eight.
Speaking about the move, Perez said: “I’m very happy to be here at such an historic club. I’m very excited as West Ham are giving me the chance to stay in the Premier League and I’m very happy to be part of this new project.”
OPINION
This is a move that’s been in the offing for a few days now. Perez clearly wasn’t fancied at the Emirates, so his move away makes sense. Manager Manuel Pellegrini evidently sees something in the 29-year-old, and he’ll bring an added dimension to the Hammers squad. The team needed a new attacker following Jordan Hugill’s exit to Middlesbrough, and Perez’s ability to operate as a lone front man or in support of Javier Hernandez, should make him invaluable to Pellegrini. Although he didn’t quite meet the heights of his first spell at Deportivo last season, he still had a solid campaign in terms of scoring and creating goals. He should fit in well alongside Jack Wilshere, Felipe Anderson and Andriy Yarmolenko in this new West Ham team – not to mention last year’s Player of the Season Marko Arnautovic. These are thrilling times in East London, and fans should be very excited about the season to come. We’ve got a sneaking suspicion that Perez is finally going to come good at the London Stadium.
