Gianluca Scamacca signs contract Sunday to complete £26m West Ham United transfer exit
The “final paperworks have been done today” for Gianluca Scamacca to complete his move from West Ham to Atalanta, according to Florian Plettenberg.
The Sky Sports Germany journalist reported via Twitter on Sunday (6 August) that the Italy international is already on site “to pass his medical” with the Serie A side and “documents are signed”.
Scamacca has a contract until 2028 in Bergamo and the deal will be worth €25million guaranteed with €5m more in add-ons [£21.6m plus £4.3m] to West Ham.
Scamacca only arrived from Sassuolo last summer in a deal worth up to £35.5million [Sky Sports] but struggled in his first season with the Hammers and only scored three times in the Premier League.
He had been linked heavily with a return to Serie A this summer, with Roma the leading contenders until Atalanta put money on the table to seal the deal ahead of Inter.
Disappointing end
Few would argue that Scamacca’s time at the London Stadium was successful last season but after getting through almost the entire summer with West Ham refusing loan offers it appeared he was in line to rectify that.
Instead he leaves after just a year with the Irons receiving significantly less than they paid for him, and he goes down as the latest big-money striker to flop with the club.
His exit only heightens the need for incoming signings in a transfer window that has proven to be a total mess in that regard.
Declan Rice still hasn’t been replaced after his £105m move to Arsenal, and now a striker is also needed amid various signings that David Moyes and Tim Steidten are straining to get over the line.
After being thrashed 4-0 by Bayer Leverkusen in a friendly on Saturday (5 August) the failings in the transfer market have been thrown into stark relief.
And if answers aren’t provided quickly the new season is at risk of following the previous one with a squad that battled Premier League relegation for much of the campaign now significantly weakened.
In other West Ham news, the Hammers have “insulted” one of their transfer targets by offering well below what he thinks he is worth.