West Ham United are buzzing after the arrival of former Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini, who guided the Citizens to the Premier League title in the 2013/14 season. The Chilean was very influential in Manchester City’s development as a football club. His work ethic and mentality are exceptional and West Ham will surely benefit from his presence at the helm.
The Hammers didn’t really have the best of seasons last term, often displaying sub-par performances throughout the campaign. Former Manchester United manager David Moyes was brought in to replace Slaven Bilic at the London Stadium but West Ham’s fortunes remained pretty much the same.
The club were in the relegation scramble at one time, but they ultimately finished in 13th spot in the league, thanks to a resurgent Marko Arnautovic, who scored 11 goals in Premier League for them last term.
Pellegrini will surely be aware of the fact that the club need to make new signings after Manuel Lanzini suffered cruciate knee ligament damage which will keep him out for 9 months at least, thus ending the midfielder’s chances of playing in the ongoing World Cup for Argentina.
Pellegrini is reportedly keen on bringing Manchester City youth product Brahim Diaz to the club. A source reported for The Sun stating, “Pellegrini is a huge fan of Brahim Diaz and wants to bring him in to take Lanzini’s place in the club.”
The youngster was brought to Manchester City by Pellegrini at the age of 14 from Malaga. He made 5 appearances in the Premier League last season and also featured three times in the Champions League. The youngster broke into the first time under Pep Guardiola but he is yet to become a regular in the side.
Over his 5 appearances in the league, the striker displayed pace, panache and tenacity, also boasting an 89.3% pass completion rate. At the age of 18, the starlet has shown immense potential and growth.
But just how much sense would a transfer make? Pellegrini is in real need of some proven quality, which means signing Diaz is a huge risk, one which could ultimately backfire.
The forward is surely one for the future but would he do the Hammers any good right now? It’s hard to tell. Everybody is aware of the fact that the demands of the Premier League is very high and it would seem more sensible if Pellegrini used the money to invest in some proven quality.
If Diaz is being brought in to take the place of Lanzini, the man who pulls the strings for the Hammers’ attack, there would be far too much pressure on the kid. It could possibly hamper his growth and development. Signing a proven quality player may be a lot more expensive for the Chilean tactician, but at least there’s a higher guarantee of success.
