West Ham United: Three hopes, one fear
By Sean Maslin
Hope #1: That Sofiane Feghouli can be the steal of the summer transfer window.
While the entire footballing world was watching Paul Pogba’s Twitter page like it was poll results on election night, West Ham United were secretly picking up one of the steals of the summer transfer window. In July the club acquired Sofiane Feghouli on a free transfer from Valencia giving them the right midfielder that they had coveted all of last season.
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Feghouli,26, had fallen out of favor at Valencia despite having 30 goals in 266 appearances with the Spanish league club. Although his attitude has been a bit of a problem for him in his career his skill level is unquestioned. That West Ham could pick him up on a free transfer is a credit to management.
In terms of what he brings to the team on the pitch Feghouli is at his best when he can make runs down the right flank and provide service into the box. He always seems to get behind an opponent’s left back and open up defenses for a cross into a box.
That should be music to the ears of Andy Carroll whose size makes him an ideal partner to knock in-swingers. It will also be interesting to see how he works with Payet to pull off the counter-attack, a trademark of Slaven Bilic sides.
Next: Hope #2: That management can find a home for Diafra Sakho. Fast.