West Ham’s Big Stars Look Like They’re Loving Football Again

By Kris Gonzo | Senior West Ham Columnist (Follow on X)

West Ham’s players wouldn’t be human if they didn’t much fancy prospect of swapping Premier League football for the Championship. After all, the eyes of the world are on the English top flight and, if you’re a professional footballer, that’s exactly where you want to be.

But I am beginning to wonder if, like the fans, some of the Hammers players are actually enjoying their football in the Championship more than they did in the Premier League. I guess it’s that age-old conundrum of whether or not it’s better to be a big fish in a small pond.

But make no mistake about it, watching last night’s 6-0 victory over Wrexham, there were a number of players strutting their stuff with smiles on their faces who must have been thinking: this ain’t too bad at all.

West Ham’s Big Guns Are Loving It

I’m primarily thinking about West Ham’s big trio — the international players who remained with the club to help us back to the Premier League: Taty Castellanos, Jarrod Bowen and Konstantinos Mavropanos.

All three scored at the London Stadium last night and were clearly a level above who they were playing against.

Taty’s campaign has been interrupted by niggling injury, but both Dinos and Bowen have really hit their stride.

The Greek centre defender notched his third goal in four games in last night’s romp, which sent the Hammers to the top of the league.

What was evident throughout the game was just how much they seemed to be enjoying their football.

And I did begin to wonder about the difference between playing every game in a struggling team in the top flight — which must have been a pretty miserable existence last season — and comparing it to playing the sort of football that probably made these very same players fall in love with the game in the first place.

Big Fish In A Small Pond?

There is, of course, the sticky situation of the wages.

Let’s be fair, nobody wants to take a 50 per cent pay cut, no matter how much you earn. But that’s a different argument altogether.

Leaving the money aside, I do wonder if West Ham get promoted and we fast-forward to the end of these players’ careers, whether they might actually reflect back on this season as some of the most enjoyable football of their careers.

Nobody is suggesting Bowen, Taty or Dinos would rather be Championship footballers.

But after the misery of last season, watching them strut around the London Stadium, scoring goals and playing with smiles on their faces did make me wonder.

Maybe being the big fish isn’t too bad for a little while.