West Ham made their fifth signing of the summer earlier this week by acquiring frontman Enner Valencia from Mexican side Pachuca. The Ecuador international has been granted a work permit by the FA and arrives at Upton Park on a five-year contract in a deal reported to be in the region of £12m:
The Hammers fought off a number of suitors to land their new striker, who came to prominence with a series of impressive displays in the recent World Cup. Discussing his move with the club’s official website, the 25-year-old reckons his summer exploits for Ecuador will stand him in good stead in his new surroundings:
“The World Cup was a good tournament for me personally, I scored three times and for my first World Cup it was a good experience, but I hope my next one is better for me and the team. Of course, the World Cup gives me confidence to come to Europe and I want to take and advance with this opportunity that West Ham have given to me. For me, scoring against England, one of the big teams in the world, before the World Cup was important for me. Hopefully I can score again against those defenders! I scored many goals as a striker. I’m fast, and I try to continue like that because I know the goals brought me to West Ham.”
The History
A product of the Caribe Junior youth system is his native Ecuador, Valencia joined Emelec on a free transfer in 2008. Initially starting his career as a winger, he failed to feature in the first-team until the arrival of current Chile coach Jorge Sampaoli in 2010 and once installed as a regular up front, quickly demonstrated his goal-getting abilities – over 117 appearances, he notched 23 times and also supplied 21 assists across all competitions and helped his side win the league in 2012/13.
Signed by Mexican outfit Pachuca in January this year, Valencia wasted no time in delivering the goals. In 23 appearances for his new club, he netted 18 times and also chipped in with a pair of assists, with his exploits winning Valencia the Golden Boot for finishing the season as top scorer in Mexico’s Premier League.
On the international stage, Valencia has featured for his country on 13 occasions and found the net seven times – impressively, the Hammers new boy has scored six times in his last six matches for Ecuador and grabbed three goals in the recent Brazil 2014 World Cup.
The Prospects
Valencia’s flourishing form should give Allardyce’s side a real shot in the arm as they attempt to improve upon a series of poor displays over the summer so far. The Hammers are looking to play a more expansive style of football in the season ahead but, after seeing his side draw two and lose two of their opening four friendlies, their manager admitted it’ll take some time before the players become accustomed to a new approach.
With club record signing Andy Carroll set to be sidelined for four months due to ankle ligament damage, Valencia looks poised to partner fellow new boy Mauro Zarate up top. Having racked up 18 goals for Velez Sarsfeld last season, the Argentine also arrives on the back of some impressive showings and has already grabbed his first goal for the club during pre-season – Zarate’s craft and guile, allied with Valencia’s agility and excellent aerial prowess will certainly afford the London club a new look up top for the upcoming campaign.
As mentioned, though, it remains to be seen just how quickly Allardyce can translate this new offensive style of play into Fantasy returns. Certainly, with just 40 goals to their name last term, West Ham did little to justify our Fantasy interest up front and it may well be that most would-be suitors will resist initial investment until the results start to improve.
Available for 7.0 in Fantasy Premier League (FPL) and 7.3 in the Sky Sports game, Valencia’s appeal in the former game is dented by Zarate’s 6.5 price tag, given that the Argentine is potentially lined up for a share of dead-ball duties.
A mixed opening schedule is also likely to prove a deterrent. The season opener against Spurs is followed by trips to Palace and Hull in the following three and with Liverpool, United and City also on the agenda by Gameweek 9, Valencia looks one to monitor for now. If he can adjust quickly and replicate his international form in the English top-flight, though, the Ecuadorian may yet force his way into our Fantasy plans.
