CandH Exclusive by Hughie Southon
Andriy Yarmolenko’s new folk hero status at West Ham seems unlikely to earn him a new deal at the club this summer.
The emotional last two games , which saw him score with match winners after his hideous experiences following the appalling Russian invasion of his country, had one or two – including ourselves – wondering whether a new contract could be offered.
However, at 32 years of age and on seriously high wages we are learning that it is improbable although he has without question become a club hero who will never be forgotten by anybody following his wonderful contributions in two critical games.
He will be 33 in October and has the chance of clinching a deal somewhere which would see his wages become inflated as a result of there being no fee involved.
After the miseries he has suffered he deserves the very best he can get and it is almost certain that West Ham will allow him to do so.
An insider told CandH: “The guy will be forever remembered at this club after Villa and Sevilla but a new deal at is a big call.”
I can’t see him at 33 getting more money than he’s on now despite there being no fee.
His initial thoughts I think were of going back to the Ukraine. I doubt he will want to do that. Not sure of where he will feel. Maybe Italy a bit closer to home or back to Germany.
I could be proved wrong that if he did stay another year he will put the effort in. His perspective may have changed with him feeling wanted here. His family may feel the same. He may say to himself it’s better for him n his family to stay with us on a much reduced wage than go somewhere else for the same money.
Wouldn’t surprise me if he is offered a short (1 year) deal on reduced terms. I agree with you that his age is against him getting a massive salary offer and the two clubs he would probably have been of interest to, Shakhtar Donetsk and Dinamo Kiev are of course not options at the present time.
I reckon that if the conflict ends soon he may well return to his homeland, otherwise I could easily imagine him being part of our squad into next season.
Funny thing is, everyone’s been throwing stuff at him for poor performances, attitude, and diving.
All that’s forgotten now – gone quiet. He’s a hero because of Ukraine, his rescue mission, and two good goals at really crucial moments for the team.
I’m not saying the change in the way we view is wrong. And I did say before that he was performing better.
I say he’s on form so keep him in. See how it goes over time.
I havent forgot the winning goal he scored against Chelsea a couple of years ago to help us avoid relegation. He has been unlucky with injuries and has never really had a run in the team to get back his match fitness. He probably wouldn’t want to be remembered as a super sub but that’s what he’s been and he’s scored some very important goals for us in some big games. I wouldn’t blame him if he wanted to move on to somewhere he gets to play at the end of the season.
He’s worth a one year extension to his contract.
It’s a pity there aren’t more teams with villa in their name as Yarmolenko will score 😂 .
Whilst he has been a great player in his time, he doesn’t really fit into our team dynamics and everyone knows (ie defenders) that he wants to get the ball on his left peg and he isn’t the player to cover the yards!
At his age that isn’t going to change. USA is the best place for him to flourish to see out his illustrious career.