The striker position is one West Ham have struggled to get right for years. Countless forwards have arrived in East London with big reputations and proven track records, but more often than not their time at West Ham has ended in disappointment.

West Ham’s most recent high profile and big money striker signing was Niclas Fullkrug who joined the club from Borussia Dortmund last summer in a deal said to be worth around £27 million. The German’s debut campaign was blighted with injury problems which severely limited his game time.

The 32 year old ended the season with just three goals. Whilst Fullkrug is keen to remain in East London, he currently finds himself alongside Sebastian Haller and Gianluca Scamacca as another big money striker signing who, from West Ham’s perspective, has proven to be a less than successful piece of business.

These three are just a small part of what feels like an endless list of failed striker signings. At times, it can feel as though the Hammers are cursed when it comes to centre forwards. As most West Ham fans would tell you, the number of strikers that have been a success and scored goals in their time at the club over the last ten to fifteen years is incredibly small.

Former West Ham player Joe Cole recently reflected on his playing days, recalling a high profile striker who arrived in East London with big expectations but failed to make the grade. Davor Suker, a former Croatian international who played for the likes of Real Madrid, Sevilla and Arsenal joined West Ham in 2000.

Before making the move to East London, Suker had won a league title and lifted the Champions League during his time with Spanish giants Real Madrid. On top of these excellent achievements at club level, the Croatian forward won the Golden Boot at the 1998 World Cup. Suker was 32 when he signed for the Hammers, so there is certainly an argument West Ham signed him past his peak years.

However there would have been plenty of excitement when the former Real Madrid man arrived at West Ham and hope he would score goals in claret and blue as he was widely regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation.

That level of excitement was certainly felt by former Hammer Joe Cole: “At West Ham, I was so excited when Davor Suker came in, because he was the Golden Boot winner (at the French World Cup)!” said Cole, as reported by Hammers News.

As well as the possibility of his age being a factor, Cole believes injury problems played there part in Suker’s failed West Ham move. “We signed him when he had a dodgy hip. He surprised me because he was the Golden Boot winner and his hip had just packed up. That was typical West Ham !” Hammers fans will be all too used to the thought of “typical West Ham” entering their minds when a transfer doesn’t work out.