Manchester United are set to face a massive stumbling block in their pursuit of Austrian striker, Marko Arnautovic. West Ham United have taken note of the Red Devils’ rising interests and have set an asking price of £60m for their attacker. This is bound to demoralize the Jose Mourinho, who had previously worked with Arnautovic for a short while at Inter Milan.
The Portuguese boss wanted to bring in a backup striker who could serve behind Romelu Lukaku in the upcoming season. Arnautovic’s 11 goal showing from last season caught the eye of the Hammers faithful and led him to earn the West Ham Player Of The Season award.
He only signed with the East London outfit last summer for a hefty £24m price tag and so far has proven his worth. The 29-year-old took to the pitch from various positions last campaign to help West Ham keep their place in the Premier League.
With most of the club’s strikers injured, David Moyes fielded the Austrian in the centre-forward position and got rewarded for that exact decision. Arnautovic also contributed 8 assists in as many as 35 games for the Hammers to impress plenty around the Premier League.
He was an influential figure at Stoke City as well, making 145 appearances across 4 seasons. His move came at a fortunate time but not one to please the Potters fans. Arnautovic scored at the bet365 last term to give his team the formidable 0-3 win and face jeers with every touch of the ball.
The striker primarily started out his playing career with Belgian outfit, FC Twente and later moved to Werder Bremen. He shone in the Bundesliga with 16 goals and 13 assists in 84 appearances for the River Islanders.
Arnautovic packs quite a punch from his 6 feet 4-inch athletic stature. The striker has the technical prowess to take on defenders from the wide areas and also the scoring eye to be impactful from strike.
He could have proved effective in Mourinho’s system and also an able backup to Lukaku. The former Galactico boss has strayed clear of using Anthony Martial in the number nine position which has also led to speculations over the latter departing Manchester.
Manuel Pellegrini has just set up shop at the London Stadium and is looking to bolster the squad ahead of the 2018/19 campaign. Losing his best players will not exactly help him take the club to improved lengths next term.
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This is an astute move from the Argentine boss, although the £60m might have come handy in plugging other holes in the Hammers squad.
