West Ham United signed Albian Ajeti from Basel last month.
West Ham United added to their striker ranks before last month’s transfer deadline, landing Albian Ajeti from FC Basel.
Having broken their transfer record to sign Sebastien Haller, West Ham needed one more attacker in their ranks, and went for a fairly cheap deal with Ajeti.
As noted by Football.London, Ajeti cost £8million to sign and then £30,000-a-week in wages, representing a budget addition after letting Marko Arnautovic, Lucas Perez, Andy Carroll and Jordan Hugill go.
With Javier Hernandez since gone too, Ajeti will now be relied upon as West Ham’s second-choice striker behind Haller, and he’ll be driven to be a success in the Premier League.
That’s because Ajeti does have some history in England, as The Chronicle noted in January 2016 that he went on trial with Newcastle United.
The Magpies, then under Steve McClaren, were taking a look at Ajeti because his contract with Basel was expiring, viewing him as a developmental prospect.
However, Newcastle chose not to sign him, and he went some way to proving them wrong last season with 21 goals and 11 assists for Basel.
The real test will come in the Premier League though, and more than three years since having that stint with Newcastle, the 22-year-old will be hoping to show the Magpies what they missed out on.
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