Why West Ham should refrain from selling Andriy Yarmolenko
According to Football.london, Andriy Yarmolenko could be one of the West Ham players to make way for some fresh faces in January. The club could look to sell some players such as Ryan Fredericks and Felipe Anderson to generate funds for new arrivals.
Profile
Born in Ukraine, Yarmolenko came through the ranks of Desna Chernigiv’s youth system and joined Dynamo Kyiv in 2007. Though he struggled initially with Kyiv, he went on to become a key figure in the squad and made over 300 appearances for the Ukrainian outfit.
During his time in Kyiv, he helped them lift three league titles, two Ukrainian Cup titles and three Ukrainian Super Cup titles. He was one of the most successful players in the club’s history. He was also named Ukraine’s Footballer of the Year four times.
He then joined Borussia Dortmund for a year, before joining West Ham in a £17.5m deal in the summer of 2018. Since then, he has struggled with injuries but was one of the best players last season.
West Ham should not sell Yarmolenko
The Hammer don’t necessarily have a squad with depth. They have 23 players, which is a rather risky prospect, going through an entire Premier League season with just those many players. The club did add players in the summer in the form of Vladimir Coufal and Said Benrahma. They still look like they need all the personnel they have in the squad given injuries could be a staple of this compact season.
West Ham’s options for the right wing include Jarrod Bowen, Robert Snodgrass and Yarmolenk himself. Sure the Ukranian has been below par this season and struggled with injuries. However, he remains Moyes’ best option off the bench if he needs to change proceedings.
With squad depth very low, selling Yarmolenko looks like a bad decision unless an immediate replacement is found for him. Thus, holding on to Yarmolenko would be a wise decision by the club.
The former Kyiv man struggled with injuries in the last couple of seasons but he ended the previous campaign as their third-highest goalscorer, with 5 goals to his name. He could be useful to the squad this season.
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With Diangana’s exit and Anderson’s future uncertain, it is clear that West Ham lack enough quality up front. Thus, they should keep hold of Yarmolenko, who is capable of doing well if he stays away from injuries. He could be a key player for the Hammers this season.
