Munir El Haddadi would be a good signing for West Ham in January
According to Football London, West Ham are interested in signing Barcelona’s out-of-favour star Munir El Haddadi in the January transfer window.
The same report claims that West Ham will face competition from the likes of La Liga sides Deportivo Alaves and Celta Vigo, with Bundesliga outfit Schalke and Serie A clubs Napoli and Roma also showing a keen interest in the 23-year-old Spaniard.
El Haddadi has made a total of 33 appearances for Barcelona and has spent time on loan at Valencia and Deportivo Alaves. He enjoyed a fruitful loan spell at Alaves last season in the La Liga where he scored 10 goals and provided 6 assists but he has made only a single start for Barcelona in the league this term.
Born to a Moroccan father and a Spanish mother, El Haddadi has been capped once by Spain at the senior international level. He is considered as one of the brightest young prospects in the La Liga but the presence of international stalwarts in Barcelona’s forward line hasn’t allowed him to get enough first-team action.
Standing at 5ft. 9 inches with a lean and thin frame, Munir El Haddadi lacks strength, physicality and aerial ability as a centre-forward but he makes up for it with his wonderful skill set. The Spaniard has a wonderful technique, which coupled with his low centre-of-gravity, allows him to keep good close control and run with the ball glued to his feet.
Primarily a centre-forward by trade, El Haddadi has also been used on either side of Barcelona’s 4-3-3 system. A diminutive marksman blessed with pace, flair and trickery, the 23-year-old is known for his direct style of football, cutting inside from the flanks using his speed and acceleration to open up the play.
However, he is not only about pace and trickery. El Haddadi has earned rave reviews in the La Liga for his poaching abilities as a striker, with the uncanny knack of being at the right place and at the right time. Furthermore, he has a magical left foot that is not only capable of finding the net with crisp finishes but also sets up goals with deliveries from set-pieces.
To put things into perspective, he would be an ideal buy for West Ham in January. El Haddadi is an immensely talented youngster and a move to east London will provide him with plenty of first-team action to make his mark. Moreover, a manager like Manuel Pellegrini has the footballing acumen to bring the best of him.
West Ham’s start to the campaign was pretty much disastrous but the Hammers have recovered from the early setbacks and are in with a chance of finishing in the top ten after fighting for survival in the last couple of seasons.
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Marko Arnautovic remains the key man up front for West Ham, with Javier Hernández and Lucas Perez chipping in with some valuable goals in the Austrian’s absence. With all the strikers struggling for fitness, the Hammers need more depth in their attack and someone like Munir El Haddadi can add another dimension to the forward line with his pace and flair.
Having already snapped up Samir Nasri, West Ham should go all out to beat the other clubs to sign the Barcelona man in January.
