OPINION
West Ham attacker Marko Arnautovic hasn’t covered himself in glory since the January window rumours have calmed down and the transfer market does seem to have disrupted his form.
The 29-year-old forward has struggled to wow against both Wolves and Crystal Palace as of late after it was revealed by his agent, via talkSPORT, that he wanted to join a Chinese club in January.
It’s fair to say that when that move didn’t occur, that Arnautovic was at risk of being unsettled and unable to perform as well as being subject to a potential hostile atmosphere courtesy of Hammers fans.
While West Ham supporters have generally cheered the forward on and haven’t been overly toxic to him, it does seem something is still not quite right.
However that needs to change for the sake of the Hammers to succeed this season otherwise Manuel Pellegrini would have no choice but to stubbornly snub him even if Arnautovic is clearly one of the club’s stars on paper.
Former Hammers Marlon Harewood inadvertently gave the attacker some advice that he must heed if he wants to continue to feature until the end of the season.
Harewood pointed out that Arnautovic needed to get his head down and start working hard, with him also pointing out that the forward just needed to focus on football as of now.
“That’s to be expected and he’ll turn them round, I’m sure he will because he’s a top player,” Harewood told LOVESport Radio, as transcribed by their website.
“Once he gets his head back down and starts getting to the job that’ll change.
“That’s just football and he’s got to cope with that.
“With the situation he was in at that time, he’s got to deal with it and now get on with the job.”
It’s fair to say Harewood is spot on with his verdict on Arnautovic however even though the forward has scored eight goals this season, if he doesn’t do what the former Hammer said then Pellegrini must ignore him for the sake of the team.