Alex Song has re-joined West Ham United on a second season-long loan from FC Barcelona
West Ham United are delighted to confirm the capture of Alex Song from FC Barcelona on a season-long loan.
The 27-year-old Cameroonian midfielder is already familiar with the Hammers having spent last season on loan at the Boleyn Ground from the Spanish giants. He follows Pedro Obiang, Dimitri Payet, Darren Randolph, Carl Jenkinson, Manuel Lanzini, Angelo Ogbonna and Stephen Hendrie in joining the Hammers this summer as the Club builds for the final season at the Boleyn Ground.
With 28 Barclays Premier League appearances for the Club already under his belt, Song is looking forward to the new campaign under Slaven Bilic.
He said: "I am very happy. For me it was very important to come back because when I was here I had a great rapport with the fans and the Club.
"It was a very easy choice for me to come back here and I'm very happy to be here.
"When I left I didn't know I would come back here. It was not easy but at the end of the day, the most important thing is I'm here now and I'm very happy.
"I feel at home, everything feels at home, for my family too, they're set up very well here. My kids are playing for West Ham academy.
"Everything was in a good place for me to come back here and I'm very happy to be here. It's a pleasure and it's like I never left here. I'm still here and I'm happy.
"This is a new year, new players have come in and we have the new manager. Everything is changing but the way that the Club wants to be, we have to look at the ambition of the Club and we have to finish better than we did last year."
The 27-year-old Cameroonian midfielder is already familiar with the Hammers having spent last season on loan at the Boleyn Ground from the Spanish giants. He follows Pedro Obiang, Dimitri Payet, Darren Randolph, Carl Jenkinson, Manuel Lanzini, Angelo Ogbonna and Stephen Hendrie in joining the Hammers this summer as the Club builds for the final season at the Boleyn Ground.
With 28 Barclays Premier League appearances for the Club already under his belt, Song is looking forward to the new campaign under Slaven Bilic.
He said: "I am very happy. For me it was very important to come back because when I was here I had a great rapport with the fans and the Club.
"It was a very easy choice for me to come back here and I'm very happy to be here.
"When I left I didn't know I would come back here. It was not easy but at the end of the day, the most important thing is I'm here now and I'm very happy.
"I feel at home, everything feels at home, for my family too, they're set up very well here. My kids are playing for West Ham academy.
"Everything was in a good place for me to come back here and I'm very happy to be here. It's a pleasure and it's like I never left here. I'm still here and I'm happy.
"This is a new year, new players have come in and we have the new manager. Everything is changing but the way that the Club wants to be, we have to look at the ambition of the Club and we have to finish better than we did last year."
Douala-born Song made a big impression while on loan with the Hammers in 2014/15, featuring in 31 games in all competition and captaining the team on three occasions.
He started his professional career in France with Bastia, where he made rapid progress to the first team, debuting as a 16-year-old in the 2003/04 campaign. Just a year later he moved to Arsenal on loan, signing permanently with the Gunners in the summer of 2006.
Song made Barclays Premier League and UEFA Champions League appearances in his first season with the Gunners, despite still being a teenager, and following a loan at Charlton Athletic, established himself as a first team regular for Arsene Wenger.
He moved on to Barcelona in 2012, having made 206 appearances for the Gunners, picking up a League Cup runners-up medal in 2011.
An all-round midfield player capable of breaking up play and prompting attacks of his own, Song added to his trophy haul at the Nou Camp, winning La Liga and the Supercopa Espana in 2013, finishing as runner-up in the league and Copa del Rey the following year, before returning to England with the Hammers in summer 2014.
Internationally, Song was capped 47 times by Cameroon, finishing second in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations and featuring in the last two FIFA World Cup finals. In January 2015, Song announced his international retirement, citing his wish to focus on his domestic career.
He started his professional career in France with Bastia, where he made rapid progress to the first team, debuting as a 16-year-old in the 2003/04 campaign. Just a year later he moved to Arsenal on loan, signing permanently with the Gunners in the summer of 2006.
Song made Barclays Premier League and UEFA Champions League appearances in his first season with the Gunners, despite still being a teenager, and following a loan at Charlton Athletic, established himself as a first team regular for Arsene Wenger.
He moved on to Barcelona in 2012, having made 206 appearances for the Gunners, picking up a League Cup runners-up medal in 2011.
An all-round midfield player capable of breaking up play and prompting attacks of his own, Song added to his trophy haul at the Nou Camp, winning La Liga and the Supercopa Espana in 2013, finishing as runner-up in the league and Copa del Rey the following year, before returning to England with the Hammers in summer 2014.
Internationally, Song was capped 47 times by Cameroon, finishing second in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations and featuring in the last two FIFA World Cup finals. In January 2015, Song announced his international retirement, citing his wish to focus on his domestic career.