On the surface of it, the decision to trigger the 12-month extension in Pablo Fornals’ contract at West Ham might come as a little bit of a surprise.
The Spanish playmaker has just one Premier League start to his name this season, with a further four in the Europa League and another in the EFL Cup.
Indeed, there have been reports that Fornals was attracting interest from LaLiga ahead of the January transfer window with Barcelona [Fabrizio Romano, 23 November] and Sevilla [Estadio Deportivo, 17 November] pondering a move.
So, it came as a bit of a surprise when Sean Whetstone announced on Tuesday (5 December) that the Hammers have triggered an extension to his deal until the end of the 2024-25 season.
But actually, if you think about it, it makes move primarily from a financial sense. The closer we get to January the closer we would have got to a scenario whereby the attacking midfielder could sign a pre-contract with a club outside of England.
Moreover, we are fast approaching the start of the Africa Cup of Nations, a tournament that is likely to see as many as three West Ham attackers involved.
Mohammed Kudus, Said Benrahma and Maxwel Cornet set to represent Ghana, Algeria and Ivory Coast respectively when the tournament takes place in January, meaning Fornals is likely to get more chances for minutes during a traditionally busy period.
David Moyes will need all hands on deck to make up for the fact three forward players are unavailable, so there is little chance that Fornals would have been sold in the January window.
Had they not triggered his deal they would have faced the difficult prospect of losing a player for free and also having a player whose heart might not have been in it had he agreed to go elsewhere.
So, not only does it make sense from a financial perspective as they can now sell Fornals in the summer if need be, but it also makes sense given the fact they will need him to cover other absences.
Well done to all involved for making a smart call.
