WHZ View: Trying to re-sign Arnautovic would be desperate move by West Ham
West Ham manager David Moyes is rumoured to be after a return for one-time fan favourite Marko Arnautovic, but the Hammers must be patient in their bid to strengthen their strike force.
Club insider ExWHUemployee, speaking on the recent West Ham Way podcast (December 22), claimed that Moyes is keen for the forward to come back to the club, but that owners David Gold and David Sullivan are resisting the move so far.
Comments made by Moyes to the Evening Standard after the 3-0 defeat to Chelsea would seem to support this, as he name-checked Arnautovic when discussing his lack of forward options.
Arnautovic is currently at Chinese Super League club Shanghai SIPG, where he moved to from West Ham in 2019 after demanding a move.
Michail Antonio is set to return in the coming games but, after missing seven of the last eight games through injury, bringing in another alternative would seem wise.
The form of Sebastien Haller will be of concern to the West Ham manager, with the Ivory Coast striker only scoring three times in 13 Premier League appearances this season, and he again struggled against Chelsea on Monday.
Arnautovic would represent a clear contrast from Haller, given his willingness to run in behind the defence in a similar manner to Antonio.
Marko is not the man
With games coming thick and fast for West Ham, Moyes needs someone who can come in and hit the ground running.
What Moyes cannot afford is to integrate a player slowly, especially if Antonio does continue to suffer with injuries.
Arnautovic has not played a competitive game of football since November 18, when his national team Austria played out a 1-1 draw with Norway.
In fact, his last start for his club side was on October 29, another 1-1 draw, this time against Jiangsu Suing in the Chinese Super League.
By the time January comes calling, Arnautovic will have missed nearly two months of football, a significant chunk of the calendar.
At 31-years-old, surely this would be a desperate throw of the dice, and most likely an expensive one at that.
Neither should it be forgotten the acrimonious manner in which Arnautovic left West Ham, signing an improved contract in January 2019 before leaving for China six months later.
Moyes is well within his rights to look for back-up to Antonio, and alternatives to Haller, but a risky return for Arnautovic is a step too far.
In other West Ham news, ‘They were playing with a man short’ – Exclusive: McAvennie criticises Haller after West Ham loss.