It did not take the West Ham United supporters, or Niclas Fullkrug for that matter, long to realise what El Hadji Malick Diouf will bring to the Premier League outfit this coming season.
Shortly after youngster Callum Marshall doubled West Ham’s lead with a fine solo effort against Grasshopper Zurich in Sunday’s friendly, the new signing from Slavia Prague picked up possession wide on the left-hand side.
And, on his first appearance in that claret and blue jersey, Malick Diouf came within a whisker of a debut assist.
A searching cross straight out of the Aaron Cresswell playbook narrowly evaded the brace-seeking Marshall, while Tomas Soucek could not divert it into the back of the net at the far post either.
For Niclas Fullkrug, the £27 million centre-forward who struggled for goals and regular chances at West Ham United last term, the signs already suggest that Diouf could be the key which unlocks the German’s potential.
Malick Diouf impresses Niclas Fullkrug at West Ham United
Fullkrug is a centre-forward who has always relied on quality service. An old-school targetman who thrives on crosses; Two of his three Premier League goals last season came via the head.
No wonder Fullkrug, who could play alongside Diouf for the first time against Manchester United in Chicago, is excited to see more from a full-back very much of the attacking variety.
“I think he’s a nice addition to our team,” Fullkrug tells the club’s official website.
Unsurprisingly, it was Diouf’s attacking output and the quality of his deliveries which first leapt to the former Dortmund giant’s mind.
“He’s a very physically strong guy, has a lot of good crosses per game,” Fullkrug adds. “And I’ve had a look at his stats, which are impressive. He’s a very good player. He also did very well in the UEFA Europa League, so we’re happy to have him.
“Let’s see how we get on this season.”
Manager Graham Potter spoke glowingly about Diouf’s early impact at West Ham in the aftermath of that eventual 3-1 victory over Grasshopper Zurich. A £19 million addition, the 20-year-old Senegal international arrives having produced seven goals and four assists during his final campaign at Czech champions Slavia Prague.
“I thought he [Diouf] did well,” Potter said after Andy Irving and Lucas Paqueta joined Marshall on the scoresheet at the GC/Campus in Switzerland.
“You can see what he brings to the team. He attacked the back line a lot, got in some good crossing positions, looked dangerous, and played with enthusiasm.
“He’s only been with us a few days but the first signs are really positive.”
Fullkrug reflects on West Ham’s Grasshopper Zurich victory
Hammers News exclusively reported earlier in July that West Ham had made Diouf their number one target for the left-back department after Cresswell’s departure. Another full-back has now followed in his footsteps, with Kyle Walker-Peters joining on a free transfer from Southampton.
Fullkrug, meanwhile, believes that Diouf is just one of many early pre-season positives.
“It was our first match. We’ve trained now for nearly two weeks, and it’s been very tough, but we did a lot of good work in Germany [during our pre-season training camp],” Fullkrug added. “It’s also been very intense.
“It was a good performance. We were the better team and we won 3-1 so, in total, it wasn’t a bad performance.
“I think you saw a lot of good movements from everyone, and our positioning was good. The runs we did in behind to get the ball and create space were good, and it’s moments we’ve trained for, and you could see a lot of good moments like that.
“We had control of possession and had some shots on target, and overall it was a solid performance against an opponent that are much further [in their pre-season schedule than us].”
“It’s still very early, and I think it’s not good to speak with loud or big words. I think we have to prove in the first game [against Sunderland] what we are able to do. When we do that, then we can start to speak about our goals.
“We’ve got a really good group of players here, and hopefully we can translate our hard work onto the pitch next season.”
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