Gianluca Scamacca has been urged to stay at West Ham United and become a ‘top player’ in the Premier League rather than return to Italy with Roma, AC Milan or Juventus.
Midway through the second half during West Ham’s 3-2 pre-season victory over old rivals Tottenham Hotspur in Australia, Gianluca Scamacca raced in behind an unbalanced Davinson Sanchez before slotting cooly into the far corner.
The Italian’s debut season at the London Stadium may have been a disappointment – from missing out on European glory due to injury to having his suitability questioned by a Hammers team-mate – but his goalscoring potential is such that most West Ham fans are backing Scamacca to belatedly come good, that Spurs winner a tantalising snapshot of what could be.
Gianluca Scamacca may still be a West Ham star
The lingering sense of ‘what might have been’ regarding one Sebastien Haller – a Hammers misfit-turned-prolific at Ajax and Dortmund – should be enough reason for David Moyes to maintain patience in another talented centre-forward who has endured a sluggish start to life in England.
Scamacca, after all, scored 16 Serie A goals for a mid-table Sassuolo outfit in 2021/22. Form that had Paris Saint-Germain interested before West Ham completed a £35 million deal.
And Sassuolo CEO Giovanni Carnevali is backing Scamacca to stick around and make a success of his time in England, rather than take the easy route back to Italy.
“If I were Scamacca, I would stay in the Premier League. I wouldn’t go back to Italy,” the outspoken Carnevali tells Rai Sport.
“Gianluca had an injury that affected him. He also didn’t know the league and the language. So he shouldn’t return (to Italy yet).”
“If he stays at West Ham, he can break through and be a top player there.”
There remains a feeling that Moyes has not yet found a way to get the best out of Scamacca, who’s burly, 6ft 5ins frame belies a more technical, cerebral centre-forward.
The prospect of a fully-fit Scamacca latching onto Lucas Paqueta’s probing passes remains a mouth-watering one, however, even if Danny Ings’ excellent pre-season form only increases the competition for a starting spot.
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