OPINION
Manuel Pellegrini should hand West Ham midfielder Marcus Browne a chance in the first-team squad next season after Oxford United boss Karl Robinson admitted he wanted to sign the player.
The 21-year-old playmaker is currently wowing on loan at Oxford United in League One and Robinson as a result hasn’t hid his desire for his club to acquire the player’s services on a permanent basis.
“I don’t know whether that would be a West Ham decision . I’d like to take him on a permanent, that would be the ideal. I’m sure his agent would disagree that we could afford him, but we believe we can,” the English boss stated, as quoted by Claret and Hugh.
While Robinson is clearly trying to put pressure on his club to be bold and try to sign Browne after he has been a revelation for the League One side, all his admission should do is alert Pellegrini to the player’s talents.
The 21-year-old has looked a level above in League One this season, scoring eight goals and assisting five in his 42 outings, and looks to have a bright future in the game.
Browne has silky skills, loves to take on players and is the type of player who has the skill set to get fans out of their seats.
While many will question whether Browne can make the step up to feature for a Premier League side as it’s a notable leap for him to take from League One, he at least deserves a chance next season.
Pellegrini has reaped the rewards of trusting young players this season and it’s not like Ben Johnson or Grady Diangana had tons of experience playing senior football before being thrown in the deep end, so why not Browne?
Robinson’s remarks clearly act as a glowing endorsement of the 21-year-old’s talents and given that the Hammers need fresh blood pouring into the side, why not try looking within by unleashing Browne?
