It is usually a case of the one that got away for West Ham but this time it seems the club may have dodged a bullet when it comes to a signing they missed out on.
West Ham and strikers mix like oil and water.
Exhibit A as supporting evidence being the fact West Ham have signed an astonishing 57 forwards since David Sullivan took over the club in 2010.
Not all the strikers who have arrived at West Ham across those 15 years have been flops of course.
But it is fair to say many more have failed than have been Hammers hits.
Niclas Fullkrug is the latest and perfect example of West Ham’s awful recruitment when it comes to forwards.
West Ham hunt striker number 58 of the Sullivan era
Fullkrug was never the right profile of striker for the Premier League, let alone a team like West Ham.
There is a reason all-action, mobile forwards who can do a bit of everything, without perhaps being outstanding in any one area, are the most successful in east London.
Do you think Promise David would be a good signing?
West Ham are rarely a good enough team to bring in out-and-out penalty box strikers who rely on service. Simply because they can’t and don’t create enough chances for that type of forward.
It is why the likes of Marko Arnautovic and Michail Antonio have been so good for the Irons.
Callum Wilson has actually been a hit so far, especially on a free transfer. But he is not the answer long term and West Ham need another option up front, especially with Fullkrug on his way out in January.
As the Hammers go into the winter transfer window, it is like Groundhog Day again as the seemingly perennial search for the right striker continues.
This time around, with their Premier League lives on the line, West Ham cannot afford to get it wrong.
There will be relief around the London Stadium boardroom about one striker call the club seem to have got right in the summer, even if it was by default.
Because it looks like West Ham dodged a bullet as a club legend savages a striker they chased for years.
The date July 2nd 2025 may not mean much to Hammers fans.
But it was significant for the fact it finally brought an end to a West Ham transfer saga charting back four years and EIGHT transfer windows for the striker Jonathan David.
The saga was played out in every transfer window since West Ham first moved for David back in 2021.
Hammers chased David for four years without success
That continued into this summer where it was reportedly Graham Potter’s big hope that David could be persuaded to join the Hammers on a free from Lille.
David Moyes rejected the chance to bring David to West Ham for just £20m in the summer of 2023.
But Potter told West Ham’s owners to try again for David in his bid to find that all-action forward the club has sorely needed to take the mantle from Antonio for several years.
Why do you think Niclas Fullkrug failed?
Given his goal record, albeit in inferior leagues, age and versatility, signing the Canada striker on a free transfer always looked highly ambitious if not a touch unrealistic for West Ham.
Especially as the Hammers could not offer David European football.
There was talk in the summer that West Ham felt they might be able to lure David with London life, big wages, Premier League football and the guarantee of being a starter week in, week out – something he wouldn’t necessarily get at many of Europe’s elite clubs who were also after him.
West Ham even reportedly hosted David’s agents at the London Stadium on more than one occasion as part of a charm offensive.
In the end, though, Fabrizio Romano gave his trademark ‘here we go’ on David joining Juventus on July 2nd.
It is fair to say things have not really gone to plan for David or Juve so far.
He has managed just three goals in 20 appearances and the Italian side sit seventh in Serie A.
Now West Ham will feel a lot better about missing out on David after a brutal outburst from Juve legend Claudio Marchisio.
It is not David’s talent that Marchisio takes aim at, though, but his attitude and application.
West Ham dodged a bullet as legend slams ‘lazy’ David
Speaking on La Gazzetta dello Sport’s podcast, Marchisio suggested David does not work hard enough and thinks he is better than he is.
In fact the Juve legend says David is indicative of the problems at his old club.
“Jonathan David comes on and jogs about,” Marchisio said.
“You’re at Juventus in a difficult situation, you need to show a different attitude.
“This is what the fans are seeing at the moment: A lot of them aren’t giving all they can.”
It may have been a happy accident, but West Ham will surely be glad they didn’t plough all that money into David’s signing on fee and wages now.
Receive a digest of our best West Ham content each week direct to your mailbox
