By Hughie Southon
It would be churlish not to wish Arthur Masuaku farewell and wish him all the best for the future!
The news that he was on his way to Turkey for the next stage of his career was formally announced by the club today on a loan deal which could become permanent and will be greeted with mixed emotions among the fans.
The 28 year old arrived at Upton Park in 2016 and has had his fair share of problems with loss of form – certainly as a defender – and injury, although there have been moments on the left side of midfield where he has looked a very decent player at times.
But the reality is of course that should we be aiming at the top six on a regular basis Arthur and others aren’t good enough to take us there so it comes as no surprise that he find himself on the way to Besiktas in a league where he could easily become a leading light.
His injury problems have clearly affected his form in the Premier League to the point where sadly – football being the tribal sport it is – he has been forced to suffer much abuse.
Sadly he will also be remembered for spitting at Nick Powell in the FA Cup loss to Wigan Athletic, back in 2018 when David Moyes condemned his player’s “despicable” actions.
That’s always a hard one to forget but the guy having completed 185 games goes with our best wishes.
It’s been clear for some time that he was likely to be on his way and thus feels like a long goodbye!
Like the guy actually very technically clever way better than Cresswell that’s for sure but like Cresswell a total liability at defending . Certainly no left back . We need a left back asp as if Cresswell is there on any formation against the best team and coach in the Premier for sure on Sunday we will be pounded down that left side. Needs Johnston with longelo as back up until we get that quality player in asp. Wake up board and moyes and move quickly too for onana . Pay the price .
Do we know why he spat at the Wigan player?
Maybe there was a decent reason. I know everyone thinks of spitting as worse than physical violence, which has never made sense to me but I can’t condone someone without all the facts.
Masuaku never complained and was sub most of the time, he was not silent either, saying many times how much he liked being an iron.
Perhaps if he is ver had a decent run in the team he would’ve shown his full talent but we’ll never know now (although will be interesting to see how the loan spell goes).
For me he was a brilliant squad player and behaved exemplary regarding the fans and fellow team mates. It is easy to give credit to the star players but there should be just as much praise for players working just as hard with lesser ability.