Both, not which for West Ham and their striker targets

Marko Arnautovic is confirmed to be staying at West Ham for next season, and it appears he’ll have some serious competition. The plot thickens on West Ham and their striker options as the Hammers prepare to get greedy on their choices.

Chicharito has come out and stated he wants to leave West Ham ahead of next season leaving the Hammers with just Marko Arnautovic at the striker position. As mentioned he has confirmed he is staying and his brother/agent has also corroborated this statement. This could all change, however, as both Maxi Gomez and Salomon Rondon are being actively pursued by the club.

Yes, Manuel Pellegrini wants both of these proven top-flite strikers at West Ham to bolster his forward group alongside Marko Arnautovic. I mentioned that this could all change because Arnautovic is not one to share the spotlight, and with top target Maxi Gomez and former Pellegrini disciple Rondon possibly on their way, he’ll have to move aside.

Ideally, Gomez and Arnautovic would play alongside each other when possible. Whether this is in a striker duo, with Arnautovic as a #10, or with Arnie at winger, any combination would be stellar as far as firepower is concerned.

The eye test shows that Rondon will probably be the bench option and late game sub for the Irons. He can hold up play by himself well and can also dominate an aerial attack which West Ham can devolve into.

I love the idea of Pellegrini not choosing between either Rondon or Gomez and wanting both players for his team. They offer different types of attacking options and these different dimensions inherently make West Ham a more difficult team to play against.

With Copa America still ongoing and with both Gomez and Rondon participating for Uruguay and Venezuela respectively, negotiations will have to wait on these players for a few more days to weeks. This benefits the Hammers, though, as other potential buyers could move on to other targets. It seems like Celta Vigo want to play hardball, but Husillos has remained well in on Gomez and seems determined to land the player.

Rafa Benitez leaving Newcastle ends the likelihood of Rondon going back to the Magpies. With former Irons manager Slaven Bilic taking over Rondon’s parent club West Brom the Hammers look to sweeten negotiations by offering him a few of his recruits back to him in a cash+ deal.