Daily WHUFC News - New Signing

Hammers seal Sakho signing
WHUFC.com
Striker Diafra Sakho has joined West Ham United from FC Metz on a four-year
deal
14.08.2014

West Ham United are delighted to announce the signing of striker Diafra
Sakho from FC Metz on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee. The
24-year-old, who has spent his entire professional career with the French
club, has scored 43 goals in the last two seasons, helping Metz to achieve
back-to-back promotions to Ligue 1. Quick, strong and an outstanding
athlete, Sakho was voted Ligue 2 Player of the Year for 2013/14, when his 20
goals helped Les Grenats - The Maroons - win the title by eleven points.

Upon becoming the Hammers' seventh summer signing, Sakho told West Ham TV:
"This is a proud day to have signed for West Ham, I really love English
football and I've dreamed of coming to play for one of the big English
clubs. Today, West Ham have given me that opportunity and I didn't hesitate
to grab it.
"I'm looking forward to playing. It's more than a month now that I've been
training for this and right now I think I'd be ready to pull on the Club
colours.
"I've come here to continue as I was at Metz. I'm going to give it my all,
going flat out on the pitch and I think the fans will appreciate that."

Born in the suburb of Guediawaye in Senegal's capital Dakar, Sakho grew up
in neighbouring Guinea-Bissau before returning to his homeland in 2003.
He joined local club Medina, where he was scouted and invited to attend the
Generation Foot Academy, which was set up by Metz in 2000 as a means of
developing and providing an education to young footballers in the West
African country.

Sakho spent just six months at Generation Foot, which also produced
Newcastle United striker Papiss Cisse, before moving to France at the age of
17 in 2007, when he started training with Metz. Two-and-a-half years later,
the forward made his first-team debut in a goalless Ligue 2 draw at home to
Brest on 19 January 2010. His maiden senior goal arrived eight months later
on 10 September in a 1-1 home draw with Nantes. After featuring mainly as a
substitute in his first three seasons as a professional and being loaned to
Ligue 2 club Boulogne in January 2012, Sakho made his breakthrough following
Metz's relegation to the Championnat National - Division Three - in May of
the same year. Handed a regular starting place by new manager Albert
Cartier, the African smashed in 19 goals in 33 league appearances to fire
Metz to second place and promotion back to Ligue 2 at the first attempt.
Last season, Sakho continued his rise to prominence by banging in 20 goals
in 36 appearances as Metz romped to the Ligue 2 title. The striker's
outstanding form saw him handed a senior international debut by Senegal in a
friendly meeting with Burkina Faso on 21 May 2014. Four days later, he
netted his first goal for his country in a 3-1 win over Kosovo.

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