Gianluca Scamacca says West Ham United is the ‘perfect team’ for him after completing his move to London Stadium.
The Italy international put pen to paper on a five-year contract with a further one-year option to join the Hammers from Serie A club Sassuolo on Thursday.
The centre-forward plundered 16 Serie A goals last season to force his way into Roberto Mancini’s national team and, at 23, Scamacca believes West Ham has the ‘project and the plan’ to help him develop, improve and, ultimately, win trophies with Club and country.
Speaking to James Richardson, presenter of the iconic ‘90s Football Italia coverage on Channel 4 and The Totally Football Show podcast, the Rome-born striker said he formed an ‘instant understanding’ with manager David Moyes and is looking forward to establishing close relationships with his teammates and the Claret and Blue Army…
Benvenuto Gianluca! How do you feel about joining West Ham United and the prospect of playing in the Premier League?
“I’m really excited. I waited a lot of time for this moment and I’m very, very happy. It was my dream to play in the Premier League for a lot of years. Last year, I spoke with my friend on WhatsApp and I said: ‘One day I want to play in the Premier League’ and now it’s happened.”
What do you know of and expect from playing for West Ham and living in London?
“I don’t know what to expect because I have never been in London before, but I know West Ham and they are the perfect team for me. I know [former Hammer] Pedro Obiang because we played together in Sassuolo and he was here, and he spoke very, very well about West Ham.”
There was a lot of interest in you from around Europe. Why did you choose to come to West Ham?
“I chose to come to West Ham because of the project and the plan and they wanted me a lot, so we found the same way. I spoke to the manager and he welcomed me, and we found an instant understanding.”
What are you most excited about?
“I am most excited about playing here and hopefully winning something, but firstly I just want to play.”
Your debut could be against the Premier League champions Manchester City on 7 August, when you could play in front of a record 62,500 fans at London Stadium. How does that make you feel?
“With fans like this, I think you give more than you have. You find the force to push yourself because they inspire you. I don’t know what it will be like because it will all new, but for me it will be a great experience.”
You have played for the Italian national team in recent months, so did you speak to manager Roberto Mancini about coming to England and West Ham and what it would mean for your international career?
“We spoke before I came here and he said it was the best place for me, playing in a tournament that would help me to get better and improve because the Premier League is the best league.”
You speak really good English. Where did you learn?
“In Holland [where I played for PSV and PEC Zwolle].”
You’ve had some big challenges in your career, such as moving from Lazio to Roma as a boy, then you left Italy to go to PSV in the Netherlands as a 16-year-old, so you’ve never been afraid?
“When you are young it’s such a big thing [to move from Lazio’s Academy to Roma’s] as it's not the first team. No, I’ve never been afraid because I work a lot and I like to take on challenges and raise my level and match myself against the best in the world. This is the biggest challenge in my career, but I think it will give me a lot and I will give everything for us to grow up together. I am not nervous at all.”
How would you describe yourself as a player?
“I am a modern player who is tall, technical and can play in the box or out the box – I am a modern player.”
We know about your quick feet, your hold-up play, your tricks and your strong shooting, so what’s your favourite aspect of your game?
“I think I like shooting the most, yeah, I love shooting!”
The reaction from the West Ham fans to your signing is very positive, and with the success of previous Italians at West Ham like Paolo Di Canio, they are expecting a lot from you. What’s your message to them?
“I hope we will love each other!”
