West Ham will thrive in the post-Arnautovic era

Marko Arnautovic is officially no longer a West Ham United player after completing a move to Shanghai SIPG. While some fans are worried that West Ham is going to have trouble replacing his production from the past few seasons, I would argue that West Ham’s attack next season will be the best it has been in years.

The Marko Arnautovic era is finally over, West Ham fans. Although Arnie had two productive seasons at the London Stadium, he will be best remembered for his disruptive behavior. Most Irons fans could not wait for him to leave the club.

Even though Arnautovic left the club on a sour note, he was solid from a production standpoint the past 2 seasons. Since joining from Stoke City in 2017, he scored 22 goals and had 12 assists in 65 games for West Ham. The question on everyone’s mind is: Who can come and replicate or even exceed Arnie’s production?

More from Green Street Hammers - West Ham

The Hammers have been linked with a number of strikers who could come in and take Arnautovic’s spot. However, I think it is more important to look at what pieces West Ham have around the striker position, which is why I believe our attack will be just fine for next season.

Felipe Anderson, Manuel Lanzini, Jack Wilshere, and new man Pablo Fornals are just a few names of many West Ham players this season who can create goal-scoring opportunities. Whoever the new striker turns out to be, he will have plenty of chances to slot away many goals for the Hammers this season.

Marko Arnautovic played a very physical style of play, suited for the Premier League. He was a bully who relied on his strength and power to win loose balls and scored many goals that way. However, his link-up play was not superb, his passing lacked quality, and many times when the Hammers had a golden goal-scoring opportunity, Marko’s selfishness usually led to him taking a shot instead of making a simple pass.

If the Hammers could replace Arnautovic with a striker who is passionate about West Ham and unselfish, the Hammers will be more than fine in the attack. Replacing a player like Marko Arnautovic is no easy task for any club. He has led the line the past 2 seasons and has been our main goal-scoring threat.

dark. Next. Ding dong the witch is dead, which old witch? Arnautovic!

However, the Hammers have not had a squad this deep and embedded with so much quality since Arnautovic has been at the club. The Irons have so much creativity in the midfield that it will be a strikers dream to receive the kind of service our new man will get. So whether it’s Maxi Gomez, Salomon Rondon, or even Jordan Hugill, I trust that West Ham’s quality midfield players will make Arnie wish he’d never left this upcoming season.