Premier League legend Paolo di Canio is warning Gianluca Scamacca about a potential £42 million move to West Ham United, speaking to Sky Italia as a transfer battle with Paris Saint-Germain heats up.
The list of strikers who have pulled on the claret-and-blue shirt over the last 15 years or so reads like a who’s who of ‘who the hell is that’? Brian Montenegro, anyone?
Even West Ham’s most high-profile acquisitions have often struggled to live up to lofty expectations. Take Sebastien Haller’s ill-fated 18-month stint at the London Stadium, bookended by prolific spells at Ajax and Eintracht Frankfurt.
So Italy international Scamacca could be forgiven for having reservations about following in the footsteps of Nikica Jelavic, Simone Zaza and the aforementioned Haller.
Will Gianluca Scamacca join West Ham United?
“It is not easy to be a protagonist in the Premier League. It is a tough championship,” says Di Canio, the former Hammers hero.
“(This situation) reminds me of Haller. At Eintracht Frankfurt, he scored a goal every two games and at West Ham he struggled.
“Then, at West Ham, there is Antonio who is a totem pole. I don’t know if (Scamacca) will be a starter right away.”
According to The Guardian and Get France Football News, West Ham are hoping to hi-jack Paris Saint-Germain’s long-running pursuit of the £42 million-rated Scamacca.
But the one-time Southampton target reportedly has ‘no interest’ in becoming the second-most expensive signing in West Ham’s history, having already agreed personal terms with a PSG side taking a more modest, long-term approach to the transfer market these days. Though it seems West Ham are not going to give up that easily.
Scamacca scored 16 Serie A goals for Sassuolo last season. Standing at 6ft 5ins and equally effective in the air or with the ball at his feet, this old-school oak tree of a number nine certainly looks like a footballer well-suited to the rigours of the Premier League.
He’s been dubbed ‘the next Zlatan Ibrahimovic’ for a reason.
“(Zlatan) is a champion. Being likened to such a champion is only nice,” Scamacca said in March. “But I have my own way, my own way of playing.”
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