Christian Dailly Hammers News

Sassuolo agree Obiang fee

|
Image for Sassuolo agree Obiang fee

OPINION

Pedro Obiang will be remembered fondly by many West Ham fans, with his time in London surely set to come to an end this week.

Sassuolo have agreed a fee with the Hammers for the signing of midfielder Pedro Obiang, according to journalist Gianluca Di Marzio.

It is claimed that the Serie A club will pay an initial £7.1million, a good figure to receiver for a player who would be classed as a squad depth option after last season.

Di Marzio adds that Obiang is set to head to Italy on Sunday after the Hammers’ tour of China ends, which means the friendly clash with Newcastle United could be his final game for the club.

The £55,000 per-week enforcer [Spotrac] failed to make much of an impact at the London Stadium last season, with Manuel Pellegrini favouring Mark Noble and Declan Rice in the heart of midfield. That led to Obiang only making 12 starts in the Premier League.

In all honesty, the Spaniard’s departure has been on the wall for some time now, with the Hammers quite clear that the 27-year-old doesn’t hold much of a future in London.

Despite his status in the squad, Obiang still could have been a solid option in the heart of midfield, after he averaged an impressive 3.3 tackles per 90 minutes he played last season, and also boasted 30 accurate passes per outing compared to six that would miss their target [WhoScored].

That also leaves the club with Carlos Sanchez as their main back-up option, with the Colombian proving in pre-season he is way past it.  The 33-year-old only made a couple of starts last season and looked out of his depth, to say the least against Manchester City, not a good sign if you’re a Hammers fan.

With Obiang reportedly set to join up with Sassuolo on Sunday after the Hammers’ trip to China, the battling midfield man is surely aiming to go out in style against Newcastle on Saturday, as he’ll look to give West Ham a taste of what they could be missing next season.

Share this article