Joint-Chairman hails ‘supreme professional’ Zabaleta

Pablo Zabaleta poses at the London Eye

Joint-Chairman David Sullivan cannot wait to see the effect 'supreme professional' Pablo Zabaleta has on the West Ham United squad.

The experienced Manchester City and Argentina defender will arrive at London Stadium on 1 July after agreeing a two-year contract following his departure from the Citizens.

The 32-year-old has developed a reputation for being a focused and committed professional - an approach which has led to him making 230 Premier League appearances, winning seven major trophies and appearing in the FIFA World Cup and Copa America finals.

The Joint-Chairman is a big fan of the new No5, and worked around the clock for ten days to secure his services after learning of his availability.

"I have been working on this solid for the last ten days since Manchester City gave us permission to speak to the player and I am absolutely delighted that Pablo has agreed to become a Hammer!" Mr Sullivan enthused.

"He is a top player and a supreme professional. He plays for one of the top countries in the world in Argentina and he'll be a fantastic addition to our squad.

"We are thoroughly looking forward to seeing not only what Pablo himself can do on the pitch, but also the positive effect he can have on the promising young players in our squad, who he will no doubt mentor and guide during his time with us."

Zabaleta is tipped to help young right-back Sam Byram to continue his promising development after the 23-year-old enjoyed an encouraging finish to the 2016/17 season.

With a host of young centre-backs, including Reece Oxford, Reece Burke and Declan Rice, also coming through the ranks, Zabaleta's presence at Rush Green is sure to rub off positively on them.