Manuel Pellegrini has admitted that West Ham United striker Sebastien Haller will remain an important player despite being dropped for the 1-0 win against Chelsea on Saturday.
The Hammers boss claimed that signings that have arrived from different leagues always need a large period of time to settle into the Premier League.
Pellegrini highlighted that the former Eintracht Frankfurt forward has struggled in the past couple of months, but that could have been because the whole team was not playing well in their two-month winless run.
“Players that come from different leagues need time,” he said, as quoted by Football.London.
“Sebastien started well but then he struggled. It wasn’t just him, the team wasn’t playing well. He will remain an important player.”
Haller still remains as the Hammers’ top scorer this season with four goals in his 13 appearances, with Aaron Cresswell and Andriy Yarmolenko close behind with three.
OPINION
As Pellegrini mentioned, it wasn’t just Haller that was struggling at the London Stadium. When you compare the Frenchman to the other summer signings that arrived at the club, the move to bring him in could be classed as a masterstroke by West Ham. Albian Ajeti was another forward who joined, and the young Swiss international is yet to start a single game in the Premier League, nevermind score for the club. Pablo Fornals has been disappointing, to say the least, and the less said about the disastrous Roberto, the better. Haller thrived in the Bundesliga with a partner in the final third, and without that at the Hammers, he has become more isolated each week. The returning Michail Antonio could help Haller massively, and Pellegrini will have to consider placing them together to bring the best out of the club’s record signing this season, potentially starting against Wolves on Wednesday.
