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West Ham swooped for the Mexican striker in 2017, two years after his Manchester United exit

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Two years after his Manchester United exit, Javier Hernandez returned for a second Premier League stint, joining West Ham in 2017 in a £16 million deal from Bayer Leverkusen. During his five years at Old Trafford, Hernandez netted 59 goals, won two Premier League titles and established himself as the most successful Mexican player to play on English soil. The Hammers were coming off the back of a mid-table finish under Slaven Bilic, but the Croatian soon found himself under pressure when the new campaign began.

Hernandez admits that his first season in east London did not go to plan. “They spent a lot of money on me as one of the main strikers for the project, ” he tells Four Four Two. “Mexico played against Portugal in the Confederations Cup and Jose Fonte was saying: “Come to us, we need you. ”

“They did so much to get me, but it only lasted a few games. They sacked Slaven Bilic and hired David Moyes to help us avoid relegation. That season was terrible. I wanted to go, but Manuel Pellegrini came and convinced me to stay. “I gave him the benefit of the doubt because I love London, the stadium was amazing, and so were the fans. I tried my best, but Pellegrini didn’t play two strikers like he said he would. The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week. “It’s not an excuse – I could have played better, but the managers who came in didn’t trust me. ” Hernandez had played under Moyes at Manchester United during the Scot’s ill-fated stint as Sir Alex Ferguson’s replacement and was somewhat baffled that the Irons turned to him.

“It was completely odd, ” he continues. “I understand that they wanted to hire a manager who knew how to avoid relegation, but they chose the only manager in the world who didn’t like Chicharito! My agent told them: “Your biggest asset isn’t going to be on the field. ” “But you know how business decisions are. I’d have loved to have had a better time with West Ham, but it didn’t happen. ” For more than a decade, Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor. Mewis has had stints at Mirror Football and Leeds Live among others and worked at Four Four Two throughout Euro 2024, reporting on the tournament. In addition to his journalist work, Mewis is also the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team. Now working as a digital marketing coordinator at Harrogate Town, too, Mewis counts some of his best career moments as being in the iconic Spygate press conference under Marcelo Bielsa and seeing his beloved Leeds lift the Championship trophy during lockdown. You must confirm your public display name before commenting Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

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