With West Ham having seemingly lost out on Celta Vigo’s Maxi Gomez, their attentions may now turn to another striker target.
He may cost £15m more than the Uruguayan, according to reports, but Bournemouth’s Callum Wilson does have a number of qualities which are superior to Gomez.
Here are three ways he would be an improvement:
1) He’s More Accurate
One aspect where Wilson is streets ahead of Gomez is in his finishing ability. 49% of the England international’s shots were on target last season, according to Wyscout. In comparison, the Celta striker could manage just 35%.
In terms of converting chances to goals, the Bournemouth forward is once again on top, scoring 23% of his shots with Gomez lagging behind on18%.
One area where Gomez does show an advantage, though, is xG (expected goals), The Uruguayan scored 13 goals last season with an xG of just 11, while Wilson scored 13 with an xG of 14.17. That suggests Gomez is capable of scoring more difficult chances.
2) He’s More Creative
In terms of assists, crosses and dribbles, Wilson also comes out on top hands down. He made nine assists to the Celta star’s three last season, averaging 1.32 crosses per match compared to Gomez 0.53.
When running with the ball, Wilson also attempted more dribbles on average (2.35 to Gomez’s 1.7) per 90 minutes, although Gomez was more successful at keeping possession.
3) He’s Always In The Right Place
The Cherries ace was also more of a force in the box, having 4.41 touches per game in the penalty area, compared to the Uruguayan’s 2.76. This shows he is constantly getting into danger areas on the pitch. Something the Hammers have lacked on occasions.
Both have similar aerial ability (having both scored four headed goals last season) but when it comes to the key areas, Wilson is significantly ahead.
With all that being said then, there is justification for Wilson being a more costly outlay than Gomez, statistically. However, his past record with knee injuries should mean than Bournemouth should accept a lower figure than the £60m they’ll reportedly demand.
If the forward can stay fit, and they are able to secure the England ace for a reasonable price, signing Wilson could work out very well for West Ham, After missing out on Gomez, they will have to go all in to get him.
