West Ham United will not need – and probably won’t want – much reminding of what Sunderland striker Eliezer Mayenda can do inside the penalty area.
The Spain Under-21 international was responsible for the first of 65 goals the Hammers would concede in the 2025/26 Premier League campaign.
A cross into the West Ham United box, Mayenda was left unmarked by Max Kilman, Jean-Clair Todibo and Nayef Aguerd, and gave debutant Mads Hermansen no chance with a towering header.
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Mayenda would only manage seven more starts and one more goal across the remainder of the campaign, however.
As such, reporter Peter O’Rourke believes that West Ham are likely to be at the front of the queue for the 21-year-old’s signature should Sunderland green-light a summer departure.
Eliezer Mayenda may be tempted to leave Sunderland for West Ham United
Having fallen behind both Brian Brobbey and Wilson Isidor in Regis Le Bris’ pecking order, Black Cats legend Marco Gabbiadini would not blame Mayenda for pursuing more regular game time elsewhere.
Perhaps that would take him to the London Stadium. Callum Wilson has said his goodbyes already, while the futures of Taty Castellanos and Pablo Felipe are anything but certain.
“It’s difficult for players like Mayenda,” Gabbiadini tells the BBC. “He’s a popular player and he’s had some great moments for us because he’s an exciting player when he gets on the ball. But he hasn’t had as many minutes as he will have liked through the season.”
In addition to possessing an impressive leap, Mayenda loves driving with the ball from deep, putting his turn of pace and close control to good use. Shortly before scoring the equaliser in a comeback victory over Sheffield United in the play-off final at Wembley, Mayenda dribbled past four Bristol City defenders en route to a remarkable solo effort.
In 25 Championship starts in 2024/25, he scored ten times and assisted five more.
Hammers eyeing the Championship’s greatest talent
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“Conversations could have been happening for months. It doesn’t all just happen in the last week of the season. [The club] know what players’ intentions are,” Gabbiadini adds, feeling that suggestions of Mayenda looking for a fresh start will not have taken Sunderland by surprise.
“This might be for Mayenda the biggest opportunity of his life to get to a club where he’s going to play and on a contract that brings him financial security moving forward.
“With him being so on the edges of things this season, it is frustrating. Your career is so short as these players might only get a sweet spot of seven or eight years so they have to strike while the iron is hot.
“It’s life and supporters find it hard when people put it in those terms, but it’s the reality. He’s a player that has given his all when he has had minutes so it’s hard to criticise him.”
Mayenda is another so-called ‘proven’ Championship talent reportedly under consideration.
Sheffield United’s Sydie Peck is supposedly a target, alongside Bramall Lane left-back Harrison Burrows. Reigning Golden Boot winner Zan Vipotnik was recommended to West Ham by the recently-departed head of recruitment Max Hahn.
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