OPINION
With the rumours surrounding West Ham United striker Marko Arnautovic’s desire to move to China, fans would have no doubt had their fingers crossed for a suitable signing to potentially take his place.
A number of targets have emerged in recent weeks, with Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson and AS Roma forward Edin Dzeko amongst the list.
However, a new face has come onto the scene in the shape of Celta Vigo attacker Maxi Gomez, who according to the Daily Mail, the Hammers are in talks to sign.
This would have definitely got the fans bouncing, as nine goals and five assists in 19 games is a pretty decent tally by most people’s standard.
Nevertheless, the latest update in the Irons’ pursuit of the La Liga ace has now taken a turn for the worse, as Claret and Hugh – a reliable source of news on the club – have revealed that a deal cannot be done for the 22-year-old until the summer.
West Ham supporters will be raging at this update, as they most likely had their fingers crossed that the club were going to seal the signing of a quality forward like Gomez this month.
With Arnautovic unlikely to be in the right state of mind in order to perform at his best, and the likes of Lucas Perez and Andy Carroll waiting in the wings, swooping for Gomez was paramount in this transfer window.
How will West Ham cope for the remainder of the season when their attack has been compromised through this update?
Manuel Pellegrini’s other targets are not available, so their season could potentially take a downwards turn from here on in.
Gomez is the player who has the ability to propel West Ham to the next level – a top ten finish in the Premier League – but that is not going to happen this season. Either way, the supporters are going to be fuming, and rightly so.
