3 reasons why West Ham United will finish in the top 7 next season

There was a time last year, December, to be precise, when West Ham United Co-owner David Sullivan had revealed the club will be looking at the age of the players they will be signing. Fast forward a month and the club signed Patrice Evra who was 36 at the time and was easily past his peak. The subsequent fan-reaction? Quite a lot of bitterness, and understandably so.

This summer, though, the club have moved ahead of their close rivals in mid-table and signed some world class players. The first big move, though, was getting rid of David Moyes and hiring Manuel Pellegrini who has quite a lot of experience in not only guiding mid-table clubs to more prosperous times but also winning league titles.

West Ham United have already spent the more than £60 million on refurbishing their attack and boy are the fans in for a treat when Pellegrini is able to completely imbibe his philosophy. Are they potential top six contenders? They sure are! Here are three reasons why…

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#3 Pellegrini is the best coach they have had in years

Alright, things started on a positive note under Slaven Bilic as they signed some talented players and had a certain Frenchman in attack. But as the season progresses, the Hammers just couldn’t tweak their game tactically and were found undone when Dimitri Payet had an off day.

The tactical nuance that Pellegrini offers is a lot more than what Bilic has managed, though. Under him, Malaga had their best run in years and even upset the likes of Real Madrid on their run to finishing in the top four.

They played in the Champions League and topped their group that had UCL regulars AC Milan; no easy feat, that.

With time, Malaga tailed off and Pellegrini moved on before that. But his subsequent spell with Manchester City where he won the league title showed that he has what it takes to manage the best sides in the World. So West Ham will benefit from his presence on the touchline.

#2 Their attack could trouble the best sides in Europe

Anderson has signed for West Ham

Jack Wilshere was the first of many captures West Ham have already managed this transfer window. Last season, the team was often leggy in their approach when Manuel Lanzini was;t on the pitch. Is creativity cause teams problems, but without him, the Hammers were an eyesore.

This time, they have the creativity and passing the range of Wilshere in the midfield. Andriy Yarmolenko will provide the pace and trickery on the wing while Felipe Anderson will be the creative spearhead up top and behind Javier Hernandez.

Anderson was linked with quite a few big clubs and even Manchester United last summer, but surprisingly, he has moved to the London stadium. It sort of shows the impact Pellegrini has already had at the club and his ability to attract the top players in Europe.

Young and upcoming defender Issa Diop will add more strength to the defence and there you have it; the balance that West Ham have lacked for years!

#1 The rest of the field and the uncertainty of the Premier League

The uncertain Premier League

When we’re talking about the potential top-four race, it’s easy enough to presume who will be thereabouts. The rest, though, is hard to choose. Burnley surprised quite a few last season and their potential European travels could have an impact in their league results.

Everton, despite spending a lot of money, just could build a squad that had the balance and that came back to bite them. Usual suspects Southampton have fallen behind because of the stars they’ve sold in the past and it’s hard to see them come back to the fore immediately.

That leaves us with Leicester City and the likes of Newcastle and Watford. With the squad that West Ham have, if they can start well, they could well finish high up the table considering their players will only get better with time.