The true cost of West Ham United’s shocking season of recruitment has been laid bare with one player earning an estimated £866,000 PER GAME.
West Ham United manager Slaven Bilic
The Hammers brought in 11 players in the summer and another two in January with only Edimilson Fernandes and more recently Andre Ayew making any kind of positive impact.
Using player salary data from Football Manager 2017, we have assessed the outlay in wages for each of the new recruits and – based on their current number of appearances – how much they will have cost the club come the summer.
A handful of the players will add to their number of appearances in the last nine games of the season but most have played their final games for the Hammers already.
The numbers are not for the faint-hearted Hammers fan with some eyewatering results particularly given Slaven Bilic’s side are sat in 12th place in the Premier League table and look a shadow of the side which challenged for the Champions League spots last season.
Staggeringly one player, Spaniard Alvaro Arbeloa, will have earned an estimated £866,000 per game come the summer after just three appearances in the claret and blue all season.
The report does not account for flop Italian striker Simone Zaza whose loan from Juventus – which included an obligation to buy after 14 games for £25m – was cancelled after no goals and barely a shot on target in eight appearances before he went on to join Valencia on loan.
Disaster: Flop Simone Zaza
According to the Football Manager 2017 data, on the 2016/17 season signings alone West Ham will have splashed out over £21m in wages – not including Zaza – by the summer for a paltry return of what will not exceed 150 appearances between 11 players – with just 9 goals to show for it.
If this report does nothing else it will surely serve as a sobering reminder to co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold never to get it so wrong again.
Ashley Fletcher
Ashley Fletcher
Fee: Free
Weekly wage: £3,500 p/w
Total basic wages by summer: £182,000
Appearances/goals: 13 appearances / 1 league cup goal
£14,000 per game
Arthur Masuaku
Arthur Masuaku
Fee: £6.5m
Weekly wage: £25,000
Total basic wages by summer: £1.3m
Appearances/goals: 7 appearances
£185,000 per game
Tore looked nowhere near good enough for the Hammers, then got injured for the rest of the season
Gokhan Tore
Fee: £3m loan fee, out for season through injury
Weekly wage: £27,500
Total basic wages by summer: £1.43m
Appearances/goals: 5 appearances
£286,000 per game
Edimilson Fernandes has been the one good value signing
Edimilson Fernandes
Fee: £5m
Weekly wage: £30,000
Total basic wages by summer: £1.56m
Appearances/goals: 19 appearances / 1 league cup goal
£82,000 per game
Don’t get West Ham fans started on Havard Nordtveit
Havard Nordtveit
Fee: Free
Weekly wage: £30,000
Total basic wages by summer: £1.56m
Appearances/goals: 12 appearances
£130,000 per game
Robert Snodgrass has struggled badly since leaving Hull for the Hammers in January
Robert Snodgrass
Fee: £10m
Weekly wage: £40,000
Total basic wages by summer: £1m
Appearances/goals: 7 appearances (since January)
£142,000 per game
Jonathan Calleri shoots wide
Jonathan Calleri
Fee: Loan (Unknown fee)
Weekly wage: £40,000
Total basic wages by summer: £2.08m
Appearances/goals: 10 apperances / 1 goal
£208,000 per game
Wow, just wow… look away now Hammers fans Alvaro Arbeloa has picked up a small fortune
Alvaro Arbeloa
Fee: Free
Weekly wage: £50,000
Total basic wages by summer: £2.6m
Appearances/goals: 3 appearances
£866,000 per game
Feghouli has for the most part been poor
Sofiane Feghouli
Fee: Free
Weekly wage: £65,000
Total basic wages by summer: £3.38m
Appearances/goals: 17 appearances / 2 goals
£198,000 per game
West Ham’s defending has got worse since signing Jose Fonte but he has had some decent games
Jose Fonte
Fee: £8m
Weekly wage: £75,000
Total basic wages by summer: £1.8m
Appearances/goals: 7 appearances (since January)
£257,000 per game
Andre Ayew has started looking sharper of late but his move has been costly with little return
Andre Ayew
Fee: £20.5m
Weekly wage: £80,000
Total basic wages by summer: £4.16m
Appearances/goals: 16 appearances / 4 goals
£260,000 per game
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