OPINION
West Ham spent a fair bit of money last summer, but sometimes throwing cash at a problem isn’t the answer.
A plethora of exciting, expensive talent came through the door at the London Stadium, and the general consensus was that the Hammers had assembled their best squad for many a year, with a manager capable of finally turning them into proper European football contenders.
Things haven’t really gone to plan, though, and going into this weekend, the Irons find themselves in the relative obscurity of 11th, knowing that their hopes of a Europa League spot are probably too faint to be taken seriously any more.
Admittedly, the disappointment of this season hasn’t been entirely a case of purely poor footballing performances. Several big names have missed decent chunks of the season through injury, and some of those that have remained relatively unscathed have struggled to put themselves in the right head space to make a real difference.
Largely, however, one of the main issues the Hammers have had has been a lack of a real cutting edge.
They have plenty of player capable of creating chances, sure, but do they really have the right men to be finishing them?
The temperamental Javier Hernandez aside, the Hammers lack a predatory hitman capable of scoring 15-20 goals a season, and that’s a massive problem for a side gunning for Europe.
Surely that points to a series of misplaced investments last summer. Amongst the riches forked out, surely a striker should have been a priority?
That’s all in the past now, of course, but supporters can at least take comfort form the fact that their club seem to be hellbent on signing a forward this time around.
According to the Telegraph, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Edin Dzeko, Christian Kouame, and Maxi Gomez are all being touted as potential additions, as the Hammers want a summer revamp of their forward options.
With that in mind, it seems the priorities are finally in order at West Ham with them targeting the right area of the team to improve.
