West Ham United target Kostas Mitroglou endured a nightmare Sunday evening.
Marseille were in action against Dijon on Sunday night, picking up a 2-0 win – but it was a miserable night for Marseille striker Kostas Mitroglou.
Lucas Ocampos grabbed the opener by tapping home Adil Rami’s header on the goal line, before Rami did get on the scoresheet himself, heading Kevin Strootman’s acrobatic effort into the net.
It could and should have been a much easier encounter though, had it not been for Marseille striker Mitroglou squandering two glorious close-range opportunities in the first half.
Dimitri Payet picked out the Greek international for the first, sending a left-footed effort over the bar, before he somehow missed an open goal having been teed up by Ocampos.
Mitroglou was then substituted at half time as his evening went from bad to worse to disastrous, which may just put West Ham United off a potential January deal for the ex-Fulham striker.
The Daily Mail reported last week that West Ham are hoping to bring in Mitroglou on loan in January, with Manuel Pellegrini seemingly looking to land another target man with Andy Carroll struggling.
Sunday’s performance won’t have done him much good in that regard, but he has at least been defending by former West Ham hero-turned-villain Payet in the aftermath of Sunday’s win, as he told Coeur Marseille that Mitroglou can go again and shouldn’t be criticised for missing chances, as it can happen to anybody.
“Do not bury the attackers,” said Payet. “It would be a mistake to stop on one occasion. It can happen to everyone to miss an opportunity in a match, I was the first. What interests me is the reaction of the guys. That’s why I immediately relieved Kostas by saying it was not over because there can always be an opportunity to catch up in a game. Attackers, this is not the concern of the team. They work on goals and it may take a small goal for Kostas to make it go again,” he added.
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