Chris Kamara has admitted that he is baffled by Lucas Perez’s poor goalscoring record, suggesting that the West Ham striker has a natural instant for finishing.
The £80,000-a-week Spaniard [Spotrac] scored the Hammers’ second in their 2-2 draw with Leicester City on Saturday, and was unfortunate to have a potential winner ruled out for offside.
Speaking on Goals on Sunday (Sky Sports Premier League, Sunday April 21st, 11.45am), Kamara admitted that he didn’t understand why Perez didn’t find the net more often than he does.
He said: “I can’t believe he’s got 12 in the last three years. It’s incredible really.
“He’s a player who gambles. It’s an instinct that you can’t put into them [strikers].
“They’ve (including Perez) got it.”
OPINION
Perez is a bit of strange one really. He clearly has something, judging by his occasional flashes of brilliance and the fact that Arsenal were willing to take a punt on him, but he just doesn’t show it anywhere near enough. Why that is is anybody’s guess, but the simple fact of the matter is that if he can’t start to hit the back of the net with more regularity, then he will surely be ousted in the summer. That would be a frustrating conclusion to his West Ham career for both player and club, but it seems as if every time he pulls something out of the bag and earns his shot at a starting berth, he then proceeds to fluff his lines. There is still time for Perez to save his West Ham career, and yesterday was a decent start, but he still has a way to go if he is to convince Manuel Pellegrini of his worth.