OPINION
West Ham United fans woke to the worst possible news on Wednesday after learning that star striker Marko Arnautovic may try to leave the club to play at a higher level.
Speaking to Austrian outlet Kurier, Arnautovic’s brother and agent Danijel said: “He’s already playing in the Premier League and that’s where the best players are. But for a player like Marko this cannot be the end.
“He’s a big part of West Ham’s team but I think it’s possible to tease out more of him. For that to happen, he has to play for a top team. Marko is ready for the next step.”
When asked if the 29-year-old could leave the club in January, Danijel replied: “That’s possible. It was already very, very close this last summer.”
This is a huge revelation from the Arnautovic camp, and one that may come as a slight surprise considering his form and growing relationship with the fans at the London Stadium.
Arnautovic has however always been an ambitious player, and it is therefore obvious why he may end up leaving the Hammers in the near future.
The Austria international is 29 years old, and while he is in his prime right now, those years at the top will soon come to an end.
You therefore cannot begrudge him a move to a bigger side if it is on the cards, but a January exit must be taken completely off the table by the West Ham hierarchy.
Losing their most important player in the middle of the season would decimate the Hammers, and put them back at square one after several months of progress.
This is not to say that they cannot replace him, but transfers in the January window always prove far more difficult than the summer, and the club must hold on to him until the end of the season.
That will give Pellegrini the chance to properly replace Arnautovic, and would allow the club time to adjust to life without the Austria international leading the line.
The Chilean now has his work cut out to make sure this calamity does not take place in January, with Arnautovic key to their hopes this season.
