West Ham United told to pay £40m+ on new striker after what Tony Cottee saw
Tony Cottee has told West Ham they will have to pay north of £40million if they want to sign an upgrade on Niclas Fullkrug.
Speaking on TalkSPORT (26 September, 8:45am), the former Hammers striker couldn’t understand why the club had not prioritised signing a top-class centre-forward in the transfer window.
Acknowledging that the Irons had spent a lot of money over the summer, Cottee wasn’t convinced by the arrival of Niclas Fullkrug and argued Tammy Abraham or Jhon Duran would have been better signings.
He said: “We’ve been crying out for a centre-forward for 20 years.
“You’ve got Tammy Abraham, you’ve got Jhon Duran – why don’t they sign them?
“People say, ‘they might have costed too much money’ – you have to pay the money for centre-forwards!
“I don’t get it, I really don’t get it, and look, they’ve spent a lot of money, West Ham – some of that money should have been spent, £40-50million, whatever, go and buy a centre-forward who’s going to score you goals, have a focal point.
“They bought Fullkrug, he’s 31! He’s a good player, but he’s not a signing for the future, is he?”
West Ham will rue missed opportunities in the transfer market
Over £130m has been spent by the Hammers since Julen Lopetegui’s appointment, giving their new manager almost an entirely new-look starting XI with no expense spared on £27m Fullkrug in particular.
However, the Irons are yet to see any concrete results from their significant summer outlay, with the side leaking goals aplenty and several of the new arrivals hardly being given a look-in by Lopetegui.
Though the likes of Max Kilman and Aaron Wan-Bissaka have quickly become mainstays, up front the picture is less clear, with Fullkrug yet to start a Premier League game for the Irons.
It’s clear that the German international was not the Hammers’ first choice up front – Duran was – and the pair’s contrasting form this season shows that spending an extra £13m could have gone a long way.
Duran’s five goals in seven games for Aston Villa – including a late winner against the Irons – have given fans a clear showcase of what they’ve missed out on, and with Fullkrug yet to find the net, the Hammers hierarchy will increasingly be feeling like they’ve backed the wrong horse.
In other West Ham news, the Irons’ boardroom have given an update on Julen Lopetegui’s security in the London Stadium dugout.
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