Valencia Move Loking Close

If I asked my fellow West Ham fans who Enner Valencia is, I'm sure most of them would be at a loss, don't feel bad; I didn't have a clue who he was before the World Cup!

But that is the beauty of the World Cup, it can take a relatively unknown player and give them the opportunity of a life time. A few good performances later; everybody knows who you are. This is most certainly the case with Mr Valencia, his top notch performances at the world cup for Ecuador have put him on the footballing map and it now looks inevitable that he will be leaving current club Pachuca, with our mighty hammers looking the most likely destination.

Enner natural position is out on the wing but he has adapted to play upfront for international side Ecuador and it has worked wonders for him and his country. At the age of 24 Valencia will be hoping the make the transition from Mexican first division to English Premier League football. Last year he was able to score 18 goals in just over 20 appearances for club side Pachuca, so his keen eye for goal is something he will hopefully bring over with him; as the pressure of Premiership football can destroy the most experienced players.

The number being thrown around is £12 million, which I personally find to be a bit too much. Before the world cup it's likely that he wouldn't have been worth half of that so let's hope he doesn't feel the pressure of that immense price tag.

When it comes to buying players based on the World Cup, I often think of Mexican winger Pablo Barrera, the energetic, pacey winger signed for West Ham back in 2010, just after the World Cup in South Africa but failed to make any sort of impact leaving just 2 short years after, only making 15 appearances in the process.

Obviously the deal still needs to be finalised but it's looking close to completion and it's nice to see that the owners are willing to spend the cash and here's hoping that Enner Valencia can live up to the price tag!