Should West Ham be prepared to meet Carlos Tevez’s wage demands?

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Carlos Tevez is a hero at West Ham United. Although he spent just one season at the Boleyn Ground, the Argentine forward played a vital part in the club’s greatest ever escape from relegation, notching seven vital goals as they survived on the final day of the season.

Nine years later, after title winning seasons with both Manchester clubs and Juventus, Tevez returned to his native Argentina last summer to be reunited with his boyhood club Boca Juniors. It seemed as if English football had seen the last of Tevez, but West Ham have enquired about bringing him back to East London. However, according to the Evening Standard, have been put off the deal thanks to staggering wage demands of £250,000 per week.

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There is no doubt that Tevez is a fine player. It is just one year since he was named the best player in Serie A and was the talisman for the Juventus side that reached the final of the Champions League, only to be edged out by the brilliant Barcelona. Even at 32 and with a season playing in the less competitive Argentinian league, he is still a world class talent, and the prospect of him linking up with Dimitri Payet at the Olympic Stadium is a mouthwatering one.

The Hammers are also in the market for a new striker, making no secret of their interest in the likes of Michy Batshuayi, who ultimately ended up at Chelsea, and have been in the market for a number of forwards. With the club looking to make the leap into the Champions League places, they could do with further options that Andy Carroll, Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho up top. In that sense, Tevez fits the brief perfectly. He is a tried and tested Premier League striker who is already adored by the clubs fans, and he would surely score plenty of goals for Slaven Bilic’s team.

£250,000 per week is a ludicrous amount of money, though, especially for a club of West Ham’s stature. Despite the benefit of TV money and the large new stadium which West Ham are paying next to nothing to play in, Dimitri Payet is currently the only player on a six figure salary. Paying Tevez so much money would not only take a great deal of money out of the budget, but could potentially unsettle other stars who are earning a fraction of Tevez’s mooted wage.

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Furthermore, Tevez is hardly going to be sticking around at West Ham for very long. His move to Argentina was effectively a semi-retirement, and the last thing David’s Sullivan and Gold would wish to do is waste money on an ageing player with one eye on the retirement home.

There are plenty of strikers out there who could bring something to West Ham in the current climate. They are a club who have a great infrastructure, great manager and are onto a good thing with their new stadium. Whilst a return for Tevez would certainly benefit the club and bring a lot on the pitch, the money he is asking for is ridiculous when considering the amount of quality strikers who are available on less than half the money. It’s a nice idea, but there’s no way the Hammers will pay £250,000 per week for a nice idea.

Featured Image: All rights reserved by Juan Pena