Dimitri Payet’s arrival is one that has brought a smile to many West Ham faces. He has the potential to be the best ever Frenchman that Upton Park has ever witnessed. As a result, we thought we would take a look at five French players to have worn the shirt of claret and blue.
1) Morgan Amalfitano
Amalfitano first caught the glimpse of English football fans when he was on loan at West Bromwich Albion for the 2013/14 season. Sam Allardyce took the decision to then sign the midfielder on a permanent basis. He scored on his debut against Liverpool and since then, the West Ham faithful have fallen in love with the player who wears the number 21 shirt. He also netted what turned out to be the winning goal against then champions Manchester City last October. Contracted until 2017, let’s hope he continues this fine form.
2) Frederic Piquionne
Piquionne was not the greatest player to ever have worn a West Ham shirt, it has to be said. Avram Grant brought him to the club after working with the striker at Portsmouth. Although he scored eight league goals in 54 games, the forward needed too many chances to finally find the back of the net. In addition to this, his temper was too hot to handle and he was loaned to Doncaster, before finally departing East London in 2013. He currently plays for Creteil in Ligue 2.
3) Julien Faubert
Faubert was signed in 2007 from French side Bordeaux for a fee of around £6.1million. The right back was plagued with various injuries though throughout the opening months, so he made little impact originally. He was loaned to Real Madrid, of all clubs, for the following season, but returned to play for the Irons in 2009 as a completely different player. Faubert recorded one goal and three assists from a defensive position and put in some fantastic shifts, so much so he won ‘Performance of the Season’ during that campaign. The Frenchman eventually departed in 2012 following a lack of consistency in his overall play, and as of today he has returned to Bordeaux.
4) Marc Keller
Keller enjoyed three seasons at the Boleyn Ground. He was signed on a free transfer by Harry Redknapp in 1998. A midfielder by trade, the Frenchman enjoyed a successful spell for the Irons. In his debut season, he found the back of the net on five occasions in 22 appearances which helped West Ham to a fifth place finish in the league. However, he could not keep up his fantastic opening campaign record and subsequently suffered from second season syndrome. He later left for Blackburn in 2001.
5) David Bellion
Bellion joined the Hammers for the 2005/06 campaign, on loan from fellow Premier League side Manchester United. The striker got off to a promising start, scoring on his debut in the League Cup. Unfortunately for him though, Alan Pardew only saw him as an impact substitution which limited him to just ten appearances for the senior side. Bellion has not hung up his boots yet as he still plays football in the second tier of French football, for Red Star.
