Former Liverpool forward and current Sky Sports pundit Robbie Fowler has insisted West Ham fans must be ready for heartbreak over Marko Arnautovic as he worries about lightning striking twice in east London.
The Austrian has become a firm fan favourite at the London Stadium following his move from Stoke, spearheading the Hammers’ attack with pace and power and netting crucial goals to launch the club up the Premier League table.
However, with plenty of speculation over his future, Fowler notes that the situation is reminiscent of the saga involving Dimitri Payet – when he eventually left the club – and the pundit states the Irons faithful have to be prepared for a repeat of the heartbreak suffered.
He told Sky Sports’ The Debate (19/11, 22:30): “Payet – a big big player for West Ham. Scored goals, fans loved him and you can potentially see the same in Arnautovic.
“Fans love him there, he’s a wonderful player, scores goals, he’s doing all the celebrations, getting all the fans on his side but there’ll be a time when he’ll be off his pop because he does seem that player.
“He does seem to have a bit of an ego and maybe going to a a bigger club in stature, maybe that’s not a bad thing for him.”
Opinion
Fowler makes a very valid point about how Arnautovic’s West Ham career is playing out, for he has filled that void left by Payet for an attacking talisman at the London Stadium. There are no doubts big clubs watching on who are impressed by his performances for the Hammers and at 29-years-old he knows that he is reaching the peak of his abilities, and that the chance to move elsewhere might well be beyond him in a year or two. The current favourite of the West Ham faithful might not push for an exit quite like Payet did – when he effectively downed tools and demanded to leave – but you know that if he is angling for a move elsewhere, it will not take his agent long to get the right people on the phone to make that happen. The Irons might have been hoping that their ambitious summer transfer window might have convinced Arnautovic and the rest of the squad that they are looking to make waves in the Premier League, but so far they are not really making the impact they might have liked. Has enough been done to convince the Austrian to stay? Only time will tell – but more money might well make up his mind.