Once Bitten Thrice Shy?

Shopping from a different store can be confusing, things are not in place that you would normally usually use to garner opinion. In footballing terms, players that 'shine' in International tournaments are rarely able to replicate such form domestically, at least not in the short term.

Hammers apparent interest in Gent's Roman Yaremchuk is a case in point, Yaremchuk has impressed at Euro 2020 scoring two goals in two games so far. He has a decent goal record for club and country with 77 goals in just over 200 career games so far, and respected Italian journalist Galetti has claimed West Ham’s interest in the 25-year-old is ‘concrete’.

Apparently 25 year old Ukrainian Yaremchuk would 'only' cost in the region of £15-17 Million, as his club Gent are, like many other European clubs, struggling as a result of the Covid Pandemic. A goal scoring player from the Ukraine who has done really well in a league which, whilst being fairly competitive, is no way near as competitive and frenetic as the Barclays Premier League, does that sound familiar?

It should! Andriy Yarmolenko is a classic example, surely the club have learned their lesson, haven't they? Unfortunately David Moyes seems 'nailed on' regarding Yaremchuk, is it a part of his 'cunning plan' to link Yaremchuk up with Yarmolenko? It would increase Hammers 'eastern European count, but really, would a front line comprising Yaremchuk and Yarmo really cut the mustard in the Prem?

The answer to this conundrum is already available, IF Hammers can adopt the same blue print as they did with Tomas Soucek from Slavia Prague, ie: loan to buy, then bidding for Yaremchuk won't carry a high amount of jeopardy, any thing else would be risky for a club that has been bitten more times than a dangerous dog handler!

Maybe Moysie is interested, or maybe he is as usual keeping his cards close to his chest in order to avoid being 'levy'd', only Moyes himself knows. Hopefully one of his other supposed transfer targets, Ross Barkley, is also a smoke screen, but the problem with smoke screens is that the wind can change direction leaving you exposed!

There are fans who of course are watching all the other clubs who have, or are, successfully concluding 'significant' business, however it is worth remembering that at the beginning of the ill fated Pellegrini era, observers were referring to the Irons as 'money bags West Ham', we kid you not, try looking at archives from that time!

All those fans from other clubs were staring enviously at the 'huge' outlay the club made on players, fast forward to now, and the only players to have emerged from that financial splurge with any degree of success are Lukasz Fabianski, Pablo Fornals and to a lesser degree Issa Diop, all the rest were an unmitigated disaster of massive proportions that will take the club at least another two years to recover from.

Be careful what you wish for, because sometimes when you get it, it 'ain't what you signed up for', patience not panic!. - Ed