West Ham United legend Alvin Martin believes things are ‘looking very good’ for his former Club after a productive summer transfer window.
The Hammers have brought in no fewer than seven players, spending more than £100 million and breaking the Club’s transfer record on two occasions, since appointing Manuel Pellegrini as manager on 22 May.
And former defender Martin, who made 596 appearances in Claret and Blue between 1978 and 1996, winning the FA Cup and leading the Club to a record-high third-place top-flight finish, says the arrivals of Felipe Anderson, Issa Diop, Andriy Yarmolenko, Jack Wilshere, Lukasz Fabianski, Fabian Balbuena and Ryan Fredericks are reason for optimism ahead of the new Premier League season.
“You look at West Ham’s signings and there are just attacking players,” said the three-time Hammer of the Year, speaking on talkSPORT’s Weekend Sports Breakfast. “From that point of view, it’s looking very good for us. I’m always careful not to get too over-excited though!
“West Ham fans want to see an improvement in the way we approach games, the way we attack games.”
It’s looking very good for us. I’m always careful not to get too over-excited though!
Alvin Martin
Martin is also pleased with the appointment of the experienced Pellegrini as manager.
The Chilean has enjoyed success wherever he has managed, leading Villarreal, Real Madrid, Malaga and Manchester City to the UEFA Champions League knockout stages and winning the Premier League title with the latter in 2014.
And the 59-year-old, who won 17 England caps during a career that flourished under the guidance of the late, great John Lyall, believes he would have relishing working under Pellegrini himself.
“He’s [Pellegrini] a very understated personality,” he observed. “I could see myself playing for someone like that.
“Would I rather play for someone like that rather than someone like a [Jose] Mourinho? Yeah, you would.”