£15.7m loss on 2023 player sale now looks like the cherry on top of the cake for West Ham owners

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The West Ham United owners have received plenty of stick over the past few years for some poor business deals.

However, one sale now looks very good indeed, despite the fact that West Ham may have made a loss of up to £15.7 million.

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The West Ham owners have actually backed David Moyes and Julen Lopetegui to the hilt over the past few years.

Despite the criticism David Sullivan receives weekly, it’s hard to knock what he has done for the team financially…when it comes to transfers at least.

One of Sullivan’s weaknesses has been his lack of nouse when it comes to selling players.

However, he oversaw one deal that now looks pretty good, despite the fact that it seemed highly questionable at the time.

West Ham made a brilliant decision selling Nikola Vlasic

Nikola Vlasic was somewhat of an anomaly during his time at the London Stadium.

Nobody really knew what type of player he was, what position he was best suited to or what strengths made him a useful weapon for the Hammers.

He wasn’t given a proper chance to shine for West Ham, before being moved on in the summer of 2022 on an initial loan deal.

West Ham sold Vlasic to Torino in the summer of 2023 for around £8 million, and that now looks like a stunning deal for the Hammers.

The 27-year-old spent the previous campaign on loan with Torino, and West Ham received a £2 million fee from the Serie A outfit.

So that’s £10 million in total we have received for him.

We signed him for £25.7 million (The Guardian), although it’s unclear if that fee has been paid in full, due to the UK government imposing sanctions against Russia over the invasion of Ukraine.

West Ham owners nailed Nikola Vlasic sale

He arrived in England with a big reputation, and was fairly well known after scoring a stunning goal for CSKA Moscow in the Champions League away at Real Madrid, after he gave Raphael Varane the runaround.

However, he flattered to deceive at the London Stadium, and it was instantly obvious that he didn’t have what was needed to succeed at the highest level in England.

In spite of that, many Hammers fans thought that David Moyes and the board had given up on him too soon, when he was sold to Torino.

The 27-year-old has really struggled for consistency out in Italy though.

Vlasic has just one goal and two assists to his name for Torino this season, and last term he bagged only three goals and two assists in 35 appearances (Transfermarkt).

The Croatia international was never going to succeed in the Premier League – he didn’t have the physicality or the pace required.

However, it seems like he’s struggling out in Italy as well.

Despite the fact that West Ham made a loss by selling Nikola Vlasic, I believe the owners have been totally vindicated in their decision to move him on.