A section of West Ham fans have delivered mainly frustrated verdicts on Twitter after the club announced striker Toni Martinez has joined Spanish second-tier side Rayo Majadahonda on a season-long loan.
The Premier League club revealed on their official website on Monday that the Spanish forward, 21, will spend the 2018-19 season in La Liga 2 for the Madrid-based outfit.
Good luck, @AntonioMtnez_29!https://t.co/wH7S7Yadfj
— West Ham United (@WestHam) August 13, 2018
West Ham fans are mostly disappointed to lose Martinez to a Spanish club for the second consecutive season, with comments including “shame” and “why the hell”.
This Is Futbol has rounded up some of the best tweets below.
COMMENTARY:
The Hammers faithful are far from impressed, it seems, by the club’s decision to offload Martinez once again after he spent last year helping Real Valladolid earn promotion to the Spanish top tier. Many supporters admire the centre-forward’s physicality, willingness to put his body on the line and eye for goal. His numbers for the West Ham Under-23s are eye-poppingly good – 29 matches have yielded 25 goals. Is he good enough to take the next step right now? Probably not. It is understandable why Irons worshippers have high hopes for Martinez, but let’s not forget they signed Lucas Perez from Arsenal on deadline, who joins an orderly queue for the centre-forward role in the first team taken by Marko Arnautovic for the season opener at Liverpool. Javier Hernandez came off the bench in the 4-0 drubbing at Anfield, and Andy Carroll will also come into the reckoning later in the season when he recovers from yet another injury. It is understandable why fans are sad to see Martinez temporarily go, but it is more important for him to be playing senior football right now than ripping it up for the youth team.
What was the point of giving the lad a squad number ?
— Russell Kirby (@rustyk1971) August 13, 2018
Shame
— East London Hammers (@EastHammers) August 13, 2018
https://twitter.com/browne_nick/status/1029035024241385472
Go score some goals Ant ??
— J (@BurchettJason) August 13, 2018
https://twitter.com/EdwardWood4126/status/1029045606726205440
https://twitter.com/HarryPe59351696/status/1029039990272155648
https://twitter.com/T_Lonchampt/status/1029257504600088576
https://twitter.com/dobbydobz/status/1029099177387732994
Why can't he play for u23, he's brilliant last year ?
— ?? Dunc9 ?? (@WHU99) August 13, 2018
Hope we can call these lads back as if we get a few injuries we will be short again.
— ?? Jonathan Evans ?? (@HighwaymanX) August 13, 2018