Sam Allardyce claims he is surprised at Andre Ayew’s lack of impact for West Ham

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Former West Ham boss Sam Allardyce has praised forward Andre Ayew.

West Ham United’s Andre Ayew (C) celebrates after scoring against Huddersfield Town

Former West Ham United boss Sam Allardyce has told Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football (11/09/2017) that he thinks Andre Ayew is a ‘very good player’ – and is surprised at his lack of impact for the Hammers.

The Hammers went into Monday’s meeting with Huddersfield Town in desperate need of a victory, having lost each of their three opening games of the season at the hands of Manchester United, Southampton and Newcastle United respectively.

Manager Slaven Bilic – who was celebrating his birthday on Monday – was under huge pressure to get a result after a torrid start to the campaign, and he got what he needed with a 2-0 victory.

West Ham United’s Andre Ayew celebrates after scoring

Pedro Obiang’s deflected shot wrong-footed goalkeeper Jonas Lossl to give West Ham a late lead, and Andre Ayew then bundled the home from close range to make it 2-0.

With the first win finally secured, West Ham can now look towards Saturday’s clash with West Bromwich Albion, and the impact of substitute Ayew will give Bilic a selection headache this weekend.

The Ghanaian forward came off the bench after 64 minutes, replacing Javier Hernandez, and he had the desired impact on the game by scoring from close range to wrap up the 2-0 victory.

Ayew had started each of West Ham’s three previous Premier League games with limited impact, but he caught the eye on Monday as a substitute – prompting praise from ex-Hammers boss Sam Allardyce.

Allardyce told Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football (11/09/2017) that he thinks Ayew is a ‘very good player’, and has been left surprised by his lack of impact since joining from Swansea City back in the summer of 2016, even suggesting he should have started against Huddersfield.

“I think he’s a very good player,” said Allardyce. “I’m surprised he’s not had a bigger impact for West Ham, and I was surprised to see him on the bench today, but he’s clinched the three points for West Ham, and Slav’s got a good birthday present,” he added.