By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)
Troy Parrott’s goalscoring record provides both the biggest argument for West Ham signing him and the most obvious reason for caution.
The Republic of Ireland striker began his senior career at Tottenham before undertaking a succession of loans at Millwall, Ipswich Town, MK Dons and Preston North End.
Across those five English clubs, Parrott scored only 16 senior goals in all competitions. Ten came during one productive season with MK Dons, while he failed to score for either Tottenham or Millwall.
Ordinarily, you would want to see a better return from a striker being valued at approximately £25m. There must also be some concern over whether his game is naturally better suited to the Netherlands than the far more competitive and physical Championship.
Parrott is a very different player now
However, West Ham wouldn’t be signing the teenage prospect who was repeatedly sent out on loan before he was ready.
Parrott’s transformation began at Excelsior, where he scored 17 times in all competitions. That earned him a move to AZ Alkmaar, for whom he has subsequently amassed a remarkable 51 goals.
| Club | Senior Goals |
|---|---|
| Tottenham (England) | 0 |
| Millwall (England) | 0 |
| Ipswich Town (England) | 2 |
| MK Dons (England) | 10 |
| Preston North End (England) | 4 |
| Excelsior (Netherlands) | 17 |
| AZ Alkmaar (Netherlands) | 51 |
His combined record in the Netherlands now stands at 68 goals across two clubs — more than four times his total from five English teams.
Crucially, this hasn’t been one freak campaign. Parrott scored ten Eredivisie goals for Excelsior before registering 14 and then 16 league goals across his first two seasons with AZ.
His performances and goals for the Republic of Ireland provide further encouragement that his improvement travels beyond Dutch club football.
West Ham must judge the player he is now
The physical question remains, particularly with West Ham preparing for a demanding Championship season.
There is little doubt the Hammers need additional firepower. West Ham’s striker options have been a concern for some time, with the need for more goals becoming increasingly obvious.
But Parrott is now 24, more experienced and appears considerably stronger and more developed than during his English loan spells.
At £25m, this would still represent a significant gamble, particularly at a time when West Ham are undertaking a major Championship rebuild.
Yet West Ham must judge the player Parrott is now, rather than permanently defining him by the struggles of his teenage years.
They wouldn’t be buying an English-football failure.
They would be buying one of Dutch football’s most prolific and promising strikers — and backing him to bring that development home.
Guest post by Hammerhead77
Probably bid 5m plus add ons!
Why are we still promoting the idea of Parrott joining us He’s already stated he does no want to leave Holland or play in England.
We won’t sign him, but “we tried”.
Absolute classic cheapo quote from the repulsive ex-adult industry vertically-challenged classless clueless velvet-shoed moronic cheapskate charlatan snake oil salesman, David Sullivan, which sadly still holds truth now.
I stand to be corrected, of course.
“Yet West Ham must judge the player Parrott is now, rather than permanently defining him by the struggles of his teenage years.” Well I never
He is stronger and does it for Ireland it’s not that much of a punt !
Hmmmm… Vincent Janssen. Tore it up in the Netherlands, we were in for him, Spud eventually bought him and he flopped. Ok, that was in the Prem, but…
When leaving spuds he needed to mature and has. I’ve heard spuds supporters saying they’ve have him back now in a heartbeat
Statistics are all very well but real thing would be better.
No good showing what we could miss makes it worse.