Issa Diop spells out Hammers ambition
June 20, 2018
French defender Issa Diop is hoping to achieve some of his ambitions by helping West Ham enjoy a successful first season under new head coach Manuel Pellegrini.
The 21-year-old has joined the Hammers for a club record fee from his hometown club of Toulouse, signing a five-year contract with an Irons outfit who are planning to improve greatly on a disappointing 2017/18 season.
West Ham finished down in 13th place in the Premier League table in a season which saw boss Slaven Bilic leave the club in November to be replaced by David Moyes, whose tenure came to an end at the finish of the campaign.
Now former Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has been charged with the task of bringing about an upturn in results and Diop becomes his second defensive recruit, with full-back Ryan Fredericks having already joined from Fulham.
Diop told his new club’s official website: “Manuel Pellegrini is a top coach who has worked at some huge clubs around the world.
West Ham is a big club and there are a lot of good players here.
“I’m a very ambitious player and West Ham is a very ambitious club. I just hope that we can have a great season.”
The Hammers have been handed a tough assignment on the first weekend of the new league season, with a trip to Anfield to take on Liverpool the first task handed to Pellegrini.
The Irons are 9.50 to win on Merseyside and are 5.25 to claim a draw.
Meanwhile, West Ham completed a third major summer signing by snapping up Poland international goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski from relegated Swansea City.
