West Ham seek striker salvation from Algeria World Cup hero
Published:The recruitment of perennial bad boy Mauro Zarate to assist first choice striker Andy Carroll at West Ham United may have left many Irons fans more than a little concerned about the season ahead but that outlook could change if Sam Allardyce rekindles his interest in Islam Slimani.
A Hammers transfer target back in January, Big Sam opted against a mid-season move for the Sporting Lisbon star but that outlook could change after seeing the 26-year-old impress for Algeria at the World Cup.
The Fennec Foxes have emerged as surprise favourites to join Belgium in the second round of the World Cup following an impressive display against Korea Republic.
Unlucky to lose to the Red Devils 2-1 in the first game, the North Africans put in a classy showing against their Asian opponents over the weekend, winning 4-2 in a game that was notable for being the first in which an African team has scored four goals at a World Cup.
It was Slimani who got the party started, scoring the opening goal to send Algeria on their way to a crucial victory and Fennec Foxes fans everywhere into pandemonium.
The Sporting man wasn’t done there either, setting up another goal for teammate Abdelmoumene Djabou to put the North Africans 3-0 up by half-time and in complete control.
Next up for Algeria is a winner-takes-all clash with Russia who have so far failed to impress at these finals with manager Fabio Capello suffering in much the same vein as he did when in charge of England back in 2010.
Going up against the 2018 hosts, Slimani will be eager to impress any watching Premier League clubs and should Algeria pick up the win or draw required to advance, then we could be seeing more of the Sporting man very soon, which can only be good news for West Ham.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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