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Profit Players: West Ham made good business from Ashley Fletcher despite his poor goal return
This article forms part of our Profit Players feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how well a player has fared since being signed or sold, using statistical figures and statements from pundits to prove how good of a deal the club managed to achieve.
West Ham United will have thought they found a real gem when they managed to acquire Ashley Fletcher on a free from the Manchester United academy in 2016, per Transfermarkt. The young Englishman had made 13 appearances for the under-23 side, scoring three times and providing two assists. He also had a loan spell at Barnsley prior to his move to the Hammers, where he scored nine goals and picked up six assists in 26 appearances.
Therefore, to pick him up on a free showed that West Ham were trying to build for the future. He was first thrust into the Irons’ under-23 side and had a goal contribution every two games as he scored three and assisted two in 10 appearances and he made enough of an impression to earn his chance with the first team at London Stadium.
Fletcher made 20 senior appearances in all competitions for West Ham but he did not manage to step up to the level needed as he only scored one goal. They duly saw him as surplus to requirements, but while he didn’t worked out as planned for the Hammers, they still pulled off good business for him as they managed to sell him to Middlesbrough for £6.57m in July 2017.
Therefore, Fletcher can be deemed profit player for West Ham as they managed to make so much money from him and, although he would have wanted to perform better for the Irons, he is still only 24 and therefore has time to try his luck in the Premier League again.
Hammers fans, do you think Fletcher can go on to succeed in the Premier League? Comment below with your views!
