Former Borussia Dortmund Michael Rummenigge has suggested in his column on SportBuzzer that he could see current midfielder Mario Gotze at a Premier League club like West Ham United, but while the Irons perhaps once would have been interested, they are in a different place now.
What did he say?
Well, Rummenigge was speaking about the 27-year-old, who scored Germany’s winning goal in the 2014 World Cup final, following a tough season at the Bundesliga outfit.
Despite the highs of six years ago, his career hasn’t really taken off since following a largely underwhelming spell with Bayern Munich, with a return to Dortmund not really working out.
This term, Gotze has scored three times and assisted once in 19 appearances in all competitions, but he has played just 573 minutes in the German top flight and the Champions League for his club.
Writing on SportBuzzer, Rummenigge said: “I’m thinking [he could join] clubs like Everton or West Ham. When I give lectures, I always show the audience one scene at the end – Mario Gotze’s goal in the 2014 World Cup final. I always see a smile on the faces and I enjoy it, too.
“At the same time, I always feel a little sad. I wonder what has happened since then. What happened to this outstanding soccer player who could do everything? He has to change some things. He lost his speed and should change his game, be more of a playmaker. He is no striker.”
Did he really play for us?! No West Ham fan has managed to name all of these obscure Irons signings….
West Ham are a changing club
A few years ago, it would have been no surprise to see the east London outfit take a punt on a struggling big name like Gotze, who is currently unable to find the form he once produced.
However, their transfer business last summer showed a change in strategy as they brought in the likes of Sebastien Haller and Pablo Fornals, who were 24 and 23 respectively when they signed, and impressing at Eintracht Frankfurt and Villarreal respectively.
These were players who had a ceiling to improve and potentially be sold on for a profit in the future, and it would be difficult to say they could do the same with the German given how he has fared in the last couple of years.
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Manager David Moyes also wants to build a team around British players according to The Daily Star, and that in itself rules out the addition of someone like Gotze.
It would be a surprise if this is something that ends up materialising.
In other West Ham news, Mark Noble has been touted for a surprise player/manager role at West Ham next season…