West Ham summer target Cedric Bakambu has officially closed the door on a possible move to the Premier League, as the 26-year-old has re-signed with Villarreal to keep him at the club until June 2022.
The Yellow Submarines confirmed the news on their website on Thursday that the striker has signed a new deal which sees him extend his current contract by two years.
#CVFEnglish | BA-KAM-BU, BA-KAM-BU 🇨🇩! #Bakagoal2022 💛🐆 https://t.co/wFvPekms6B
— Villarreal CF (@VillarrealCF) 13 Temmuz 2017
The Hammers were reported to have had their £22m bid rejected for the Congo international this summer, as Slaven Billic looked to bolster his severely thin attacking options ahead of his make or break season at the London stadium.
The striker has now committed his long-term future to Villarreal after becoming the club’s main goalscorer since his move from Turkish side Bursaspor in 2015.
The 26-year-old was plagued by injury issues throughout last season, limiting him to only 17 La Liga starts. However, Bakambu still managed to show off his talent by netting 11 goals for the campaign as the Yellow Submarines finished the season in fifth place.
Whilst WhoScored revealed that out of the 30 players who have scored at least 15 goals in the last two La Liga season
, only Alvaro Morata (27.3) and Luis Suarez have a higher conversion rate than Bakambu (23.5%).
The striker is now set to maintain his focus with the Spanish club ahead of next season, as the Yellow Submarines also look to make a mark in the Europa League this season.