Pick Your Poison - West Ham United

The Challenge

Pick 3 players you believe left your club and have gone on to bigger/better things and that you want back at the club. Then make a choice between the 3 players as to which one you'd take back in the current squad. Judge all players on their time of sale, not currently. 

The Challenger

Jim Munro, 49, London

Player 1

Glen Johnson - Right Back

Jan 2003 - May 2003

"The 18-year-old right-back broke into a struggling first XI after Xmas in the 2002-03 season. His arrival along with that of experienced left-back Rufus Brevett (a January signing) helped the relegation threatened club put together an amazing run of just one defeat in the final 11 games. Johnson signed a new four-year deal in March and despite the Irons slipping out of the division, Johnson was regarded as one of the new young breed who would help the club make a quick return. As it was, he was the first to leave in a £6million summer move, becoming the first signing of the Roman Abramovich era at Chelsea."

Glen Johnson broke into West Ham's team as they were fighting a losing battle with relegation from the Premier League. Although everyone knew he had the potential to be a star, the decision to throw him into the side in that sort of environment seemed strange, but it certainly paid off. Despite him not being able to help keep West Ham in the divison, he boosted his own reputation and earned himself a £6M deal to London rivals Chelsea and was the first signing of Chelsea's 'Russian Revolution'. He struggled to break into their side on a regular basis and has since represented Portsmouth and Liverpool and is regarded as England's first choice right-back. 

Player 2

Carlos Tevez - Striker

July 2006 - July 2007

"His part in West Ham's Great Escape is the stuff of legend, but the passage of time has papered over the fact that the Argentina assassin failed to score a single goal in his first 19 appearances for the Hammers in all competitions. That all changed with a first goal in a home defeat by Spurs in March 2007, sparking a run of seven goals in West Ham's final 10 Premier League games. His departure after just one season was sad but not unexpected with Man United stepping in. What we didn't realise at the time of course is that one season is about all you get from the single minded hotshot, no matter who you are."

Carlitos Tevez is currently known as the spoilt brat at Manchester City who refused to come on as a substitute in a Champions League tie vs Bayern Munich earlier this season. He's since gone AWOL and is on the lookout for a new club, however amidst all the controversy, it's often forgotten how good a footballer he is. He came to West Ham from Corinthians and struggled to adapt to English lifestyle and football, not scoring in 19 games after joining. However, when he got going it was hard to stop him. He scored numerous vital goals, most notably against Manchester United at Old Trafford on the final day of the season to keep the Hammers up. That was enough to spring Sir Alex Ferguson into action and the legendary manager signed the striker on an initial 2-year-loan deal with an option to buy. He helped United to 2 Champions League Finals in his 2 years there, winning one. That pace and desire is sorely missed up front for West Ham at the moment and would without doubt push them back into the Premier League.

Player 3

Demba Ba - Striker

January 2011 - July 2011

"West Ham took a big gamble on the Senegalese striker who had been plagued with injury at German club 1899 Hoffenheim. A proposed £5.9million move to Stoke collapsed in January 2011 after Ba failed a medical. The Irons stepped in and offered the prolific hitman a three-year deal, crucially with a release clause should the club be relegated. Ba hammered in seven goals in just 12 appearances to end the season as the club's leading scorer, but his efforts weren't enough to save the Irons from the drop."

Demba Ba, signing of the season. He signed for West Ham last January in a bid to keep the Hammers in the Premier League, and despite his best efforts was unable to do so. However, he moved on a free transfer back into the Premier League with Newcastle where he's been an absolute revelation, banging in a superb 15 goals from just 19 starts for the club. A superb acquisition, Ba could have single handedly brought West Ham back into the Premier League having been so unlucky in his efforts to keep them in the division to begin with.

CONCLUSION

JIM MUNRO

"Without a doubt it has to be Demba Ba. He's carried on at Newcastle where he left off with West Ham. At the time of writing he's smashed 11 goals in just 14 appearances for the Toon - making his total in his first year in English football 18 goals from 26 Premier League games. We can only imagine what damage he could have been inflicting upon our promotion rivals in the Championship, or indeed how West Ham would have fared this season had they stayed up with Ba leading the line."

DMF

West Ham are currently top of the Championship with 53 points from 21 games. But it seems they're lacking an out and out goalscorer. Both Tevez and Ba would bring that to the side and if we're judging the players on the time of their sale rather than currently, then I'd have to say Carlos Tevez (minus all his issues) is one of the best strikers in world football.  So based on that, I can't look past "young" Carlitos returning to Upton Park to help fire the Hammers back into the Premier League.

Do you agree with the choices @JimMunro made? Let us know in the comments section or on Twitter!

DMF (@dmf180593)