Amidst all the chaos of the transfer market, I think a few of us are forgetting one signature the Chairmen have already wrapped up, that of Antonio Martinez.
Granted he’s unproven, it’s not the glamorous signature that we are after or indeed that we require heading into our hectic season but this player holds a lot of promise in my eyes.
Coming in after scoring over 100 goals in the Blanquinegra Academy of Valencia, he definitely can find the back of the net. For a reported fee of around £2.4m, the Hammers really might’ve gotten themselves a bargain. Valencia begrudgingly allowed him to join West Ham, but have placed a first refusal clause in his contract, – they are obviously aware of his potential.
I believe he was with West Ham for a matter of months before clinching joint top-scorer in the ICGT 2016 trophy in May, after showing great composure and scoring a penalty to earn a 1-1 draw, taking West Ham into the final.
The uncertainty surrounding the futures of Diafra Sakho and Enner Valencia would open up a spot in the first-team squad for that big-name, 20-goal-a-season striker Slaven Bilic is after, but also perhaps a place for Martinez to make a first-team breakthrough.
I can see the Spaniard getting some minutes under his belt during the pre-season tour of the USA and, should he impress the coaching staff, could force himself into contention for the Europa League squad during the third qualifying round, much like Martin Samuelsen was last season.
With Bilic’s passion and the way the youth squad are playing at the moment, I can’t see why the majority of them can’t get some first team minutes, especially with the impending slog of the Europa League next season.
Martin Samuelsen was incredible for Peterborough last season and we’ve all heard about Reece Burke scooping up nearly every award Bradford City could offer. We shall see have to wait and see how they all can play a part in possibly West Ham’s most challenging season yet.
