West Ham had a cunning ploy to finally land a quality young striker and it looks to have paid off as Brian Brobbey jets in.
West Ham fans were furious last night when it emerged the club was closing in on signing Andre Silva.
After making a £57m bid for Jhon Duran, supporters – and indeed Graham Potter – were led to believe West Ham have some serious cash to spend.
So when it emerged that West Ham’s alternative to Duran was the nomadic, injury-prone, journeyman Silva, fans were seriously unimpressed.
Silva has scored just five goals in the last 41 games over two seasons.
More worrying is his injury record.
Despite having their fingers burned too many times to mention, West Ham looked set to sanction a move for a player who has missed 530 days to injury in the last two seasons.
And a player who is currently out with a calf injury.
In terms of profile, Silva looks a poorly researched and uninspiring pick.
West Ham pull off striker smokescreen masterclass
For a start you could not get two more contrasting strikers than Duran and Silva.
At nearly 30, Silva has a distinct lack of pace and strength and is known for very much being a box striker who offers little else to the team.
The problem is Silva doesn’t even offer goals to make up for it.
A deal was reportedly agreed for a six-month loan deal with an option to buy.
Hammers News highlighted last night the ludicrous situation after it was claimed powerful young Ajax forward Brian Brobbey was West Ham’s back-up plan for Silva.
Why wouldn’t West Ham just go for 22-year-old powerful, pacy all-rounder Brobbey as their main target?
Brobbey shares many similar attributes to Michail Antonio and looks a much better fit for the Premier League after all.
Well it seems we need to give credit where it is due.
Because West Ham have pulled off a striker smokescreen masterclass to seal the signing of Brobbey.
And the Dutchman is flying to the UK today this weekend to complete the move.
Brobbey actually played for Ajax in the Europa League last night.
But, Hammers News understands he is now heading to England to complete his move.
Football correspondent Graeme Bailey has claimed Brobbey is due in London for a medical in the next 48 hours after West Ham finalised the terms of a loan deal with Ajax overnight on Thursday.
“Brobbey is the one,” Bailey told Hammers News.
“Brobbey is decent – it’s more fitting with Potter system in the long-term – definitely a positive one, in comparison to Silva – I always thought Silva, like many of the links, was pure back up in case West Ham were desperate in last week of window.”
Brobbey is a name long linked with the Premier League.
Hammers get Silva lining with Brobbey signing
West Ham’s rivals Tottenham, Arsenal and Man United have all been linked in the past.
His record last season is infinitely more impressive than Silva’s.
Brobbery bagged 22 goals and laid on 12 assists for Ajax in the 2023/24 campaign.
He has not been as prolific this term with only four so far – but has six assists to go with them.
West Ham are getting a bull of a striker who has so many attributes the team are sorely missing.
West Ham’s owners told Hammers News that Potter had not been keen on many of the striker put to him since arriving.
It has now emerged that no less than 20 striker options were put to the manager.
Refreshingly, Potter resisted most of them until the prospect of Brobbey came up.
Known for his explosive pace, physicality, and clinical finishing, Potter jumped at the chance.
Where Brobbey is streets ahead of Antonio is his excellent hold up play. He uses his strong frame to shield the ball and bring teammates into attacking moves.
His movement off the ball is intelligent, often finding pockets of space behind defenders with well-timed runs.
A product of Ajax’s renowned youth academy, Brobbey is good on the ball – as you would expect from a Dutch attacker.
He is the ideal platform to build off and loves getting involved with intricate passing sequences.
The best news – and probably the reason Potter wanted him – is that Brobbey thrives in high-intensity pressing systems. He uses his speed and work rate to harass defenders and force mistakes.
His blend of strength, speed, and finishing prowess makes him a well-rounded striker with immense potential.
West Ham have pulled off a coup if they can get Brobbey signed, sealed and delivered.
And the Silva smokescreen could prove to be a transfer masterclass.
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