da brdice： This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
da esoccer bet： When Sebastien Haller made his big-money arrival from Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer, Manuel Pellegrini would no doubt have been hoping for the £45m to start firing right away for West Ham.
Instead, the Frenchman has had a bit of an inconsistent start to life in the Premier League, scoring three goals in the space of two games back in late August, before going on a run of just one in the next six. Pellegrini has so far appeared to favour the one striker formation for the Hammers, but could getting the best out of Haller come with giving him a strike partner for him to work with?
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At Frankfurt, the Frenchman’s partnership with Luka Jovic was something to behold, with the latter even remarking that the key to their success was because they had “chemistry” on the pitch. The duo could share the goal-scoring burden and feed off each other.
So, with reports from Football Insider suggesting the Hammers could be interested in a January swoop for Chelsea forward Olivier Giroud, could that be the signing that truly unlocks their summer signing’s full potential?
On the chalkboard
Whilst Haller and Giroud on first glance appear to be two of the same, in terms of their physical profile, they could forge a dominant relationship together. The latter has made a career out of being a battering ram with a delicate touch – think back to the 33-year-old’s involvement in Arsenal’s impressive team goals against Norwich and Sunday respectively.
Haller has been starved of real service this season, and can often get isolated on his own up front. As per Sofascore, in the Premier League this season, he has averaged just 45.1 touches and 1.6 shots per game, and that is directly as a result of West Ham struggling to maintain control. They have averaged less than 50% possession this season in the top-flight, and that only increases the pressure on their star striker to try and create something out of nothing.
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For a target-man centre-forward, Giroud has got a career average of 0.9 key passes per game, and that little bit of ingenuity when it comes to creating chances for his fellow teammates could be the key to getting to his fellow Frenchman, Haller, more chances to score.