West Ham have been heavily linked with a move for Stoke’s Marko Arnautovic.
Arnautovic has handed in a transfer request at the bet365 Stadium in the wake of the Hammers’ interest and it is becoming increasingly likely the 28-year-old will make the switch to East London – if the Potteries’ valuation of £20m is met, according to the Express.
Stoke City’s Wilfried Bony celebrates scoring their third goal with Marko Arnautovic
So if the forward does indeed arrive at the London Stadium, what can West Ham fans expect from the Austria international?
According to the report from the Evening Standard, Slaven Bilic wants pace and power instilled in his attack and Arnautovic would certainly provide that. Despite operating out wide, he is not built like a traditional winger with height and strength and in the Premier League last season, won about half of his aerial duels.
Arnautovic also knows where the goal is, with 17 league strikes in 66 games for Stoke over the past two campaigns and in his particularly prolific term of 2015/16, winners against Chelsea, Manchester City and Everton shows he does not shy away on the big occasions.
The downside to the attacker’s game is his tendency to commit fouls – which although can be seen as reckless or committed depending on which way one looks at it, picking up cards and therefore suspensions is never a good thing.
Arnautovic has also been criticised for a lack of consistency during his time in Staffordshire, although the more the player has matured the less of an issue that has become.
Stoke City’s Marko Arnautovic shoots at goal
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