The signing of Sebastien Haller was one of the most exciting transfers West Ham had made in some time, and the Frenchman is already beginning to prove his worth.
Signed for a reported club-record fee of £45m according to BBC Sport, the former Eintracht Frankfurt target man has hit the ground running in the Premier League, scoring three goals in the first four matches of the new season as numbers from Transfermarkt show.
As well as making an immediate impact on both the pitch and with the fans, Haller has also won admiration from his teammates, with Declan Rice recently saying to West Ham’s official website: “Seb is a great lad. I’m buzzing for him. We paid a lot of money for him and I’m delighted for him that he’s got his goals. All our strikers have always given everything and I can’t say a bad word about them, as they’ve all given everything for the team. Now, we’ve got Seb and he looks really good.”
Indeed, the arrival of the 25-year-old striker has seemingly solved one of West Ham’s longest-standing problems, that being the need for a genuine centre-forward who can stick the ball in the net, and against Aston Villa on Monday, Haller has a good chance to continue his goalscoring form.
Just like the Hammers, Dean Smith’s side have only managed to keep one clean sheet in the league, meaning the opportunity for goals is there for Haller. What is more, is that Villa have proven this season that when faced with a striker that is more on the physical size, the centre-backs tend to be more exploited.
This was the case against Tottenham in their opening game of the season, where a Harry Kane brace saw the north London side claim a 3-1 win as well as against Bournemouth as Callum Wilson was influential in a 2-1 triumph for the Cherries.
Haller has enjoyed life in the Premier League, and against the newly-promoted Championship side, the former Bundesliga attacker could have a night to remember under the lights at Villa Park.
