Why West Ham should take a chance with Martin Braithwaite
As per Mundo Deportivo (h/t The Express), West Ham are in the race to sign Barcelona ace Martin Braithwaite in the summer.
Braithwaite, 29, came to prominence during his time at Toulouse, where he scored 40 goals in 149 appearances before joining Middlesbrough in the summer of 2017. Though he scored 9 goals 35 league games for Boro, he could make an impact and was sent on loan to Leganes initially before making the move permanent last summer.
He did a decent job with Leganes in the first half of the campaign before moving to Barcelona in the winter. At Camp Nou, he could only make four starts in the league and has been deprived of regular game time. The report suggests that the Catalan giants are willing to offload the Danish striker and thus, West Ham should make a move for him.
Braithwaite could add depth to West Ham’s attack
Despite a poor campaign where they finished 16th in the table, the Hammers managed to score 49 goals in the league. They had to depend upon Englishman Michail Antonio to drag them over the line as he managed to score 10 goals in 24 games. Summer signing Sebastien Haller was expected to lead their attack but the Frenchman failed miserably.
Albian Ajeti also failed to live up to the expectations and has been linked with a move to Celtic. With one striker underperforming and another linked with an exit, the Hammers could struggle next season without the required depth.
In that regard, Braithwaite would be a viable option for the club. He may not have performed to his best abilities with Barcelona but a few months before joining the Catalans, he was in good form. He scored 7 goals in La Liga this term and could do better with the right number of opportunities.
He has already got some experience in English football and his inclusion would bring healthy competition to Moyes’ squad. The Danish international has already made over 350 career appearances and his experience could come in handy for the Hammers.
Read more
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- Why West Ham should make a move for Josh Maja
Verdict
At 29, Braithwaite still has few years left to play at a high level and West Ham should consider him as he could provide them with some much-needed depth in the squad. Moyes’ attackers are not in the best of forms and signing the former Leganes man could pay off well.
