West Ham will be feeling fresh regret over striker Jhon Duran after a major revelation from the agent of Niclas Fullkrug.
The German striker’s agent has made a telling admission that has left Hammers fans wondering what might have been — while memories of their failed move for Jhon Duran resurface once again.
There is a parallel universe – that’s not a million light years away – where Colombian firebrand Duran is leading the line for West Ham.
It could and perhaps should have been the reality for the Hammers just last year.
Duran was West Ham’s top striker target last summer as Tim Stedten was handed £155m to spend on rebuilding the squad.
Steidten’s sliding doors moment choosing Fullkrug over Duran
Negotiations with Aston Villa rumbled on for two months.
The on-off deal looked like it was very much on when Duran took to social media and infamously did a crossed Hammers gesture when asked about the speculation.
In the end West Ham would not pay Aston Villa’s £45m asking price at the time and there were suggestions from within the club that it was too much to spend on an inexperienced player.
Instead technical director Steidten elected to spread his striker budget over the signings of Niclas Fullkrug and Luis Guilherme.
Duran went on to have a barnstorming first half of the season with Villa – including rather inevitably scoring the winner against the Hammers in the first game of the season.
Tensions between the striker and Unai Emery over his lack of starts saw West Ham linked with Duran again in January.
What we know now is that Villa were keen to sell due in order to comply with PSR, which would also later force the sale of their women’s team and Jacob Ramsey.
Duran was sold to Al-Nassr for a whopping £65m instead but did not settle and moved to Fenerbahce on loan in the summer, after again being linked with the Hammers.
It was a case of what might have been for West Ham and Duran – a sliding doors moment.
Fresh Duran regret for West Ham after agent’s Fullkrug admission
Meanwhile Fullkrug has spent most of his first 16 months in east London injured after a £27m move.
The big German is out again right now with a return to action not likely until after the November international break.
Even when he is fit, though, Fullkrug has failed to impress for the Hammers.
In fact West Ham’s Fullkrug has been named statistically the worst striker in the Premier League.
There were hopes Fullkrug could end up proving his worth this season after a full pre-season and – by his own admission – losing some weight in the summer.
Now there is fresh Duran regret for West Ham as an agent makes a major Fullkrug admission.
When Steidten unveiled Fullkrug he said he opted for him over Duran because his experience meant he would hit the ground running.
West Ham felt it was not necessary to sign a younger, pacy, more mobile striker in the summer in addition to Callum Wilson because they were hedging their bets on Fullkrug coming good.
Now, after 16 wasted months of Fullkrug proving to be the injury-prone, ageing forward who isn’t cut out for the Premier League, someone has finally admitted defeat and held their hands up on the disastrous move.
Because Fullkrug’s agent, Thorsten Wirth, has told the ‘TOMorrow Business Podcast’, the move to West Ham has been a massive flop for all concerned and the striker wants to leave.
Fullkrug agent: West Ham move a mistake and he wants out
Wirth says he needs to speak to West Ham but assumes they will not stand in Fullkrug’s way when January rolls around.
He also conceded Fullkrug’s persistent injuries are as much to blame as anything else.
“That always has to happen in coordination with the club, but I think it might make sense to make a change,” said Wirth.
“Many would probably agree that Niclas is a classic penalty-area striker – strong in the air, physically powerful, able to shield the ball – basically made for the Premier League.
“(But) in retrospect, you have to say the transfer didn’t work. There’s no sugar-coating it.
“Time and again, just when you thought: Now he’s coming, now he’ll show England it wasn’t just a good Euro and then nothing afterwards – another injury came. And that’s a shame. He’s had a bit of negative momentum and also some bad luck.”
What a waste of time and money when West Ham could have just paid another £18m to get an exciting young bull like Duran.
Yes the Colombian has had his issues with temperament but with a firm hand he has proved he is one of the top young forward talents around.
That should have been at West Ham.
But it is yet another stain on Steidten and a string of terrible decisions he and the owners made during the big splurge last summer that continues to cost the club dear.
Fullkrug will have little to no resale value now after his string of injuries and lack of success in England.
Yet West Ham still need to go out and find a new striker in January.
Could another move for Duran be on the cards?
West Ham will be hard pressed to attract top quality players without issues at their current clubs.
So the fact Duran was reportedly ‘depressed and refusing to play’ for Fener following Jose Mourinho’s sacking could raise the prospect of another attempt to bring him to east London.
He has just recently come back into the side, though, scoring the winner in a 3-2 victory over Besiktas at the weekend.
