Jordan Hugill has barely featured since joining West Ham from Preston in January.

His former side have a chance of finishing in the play-offs if results go the right way while the Hammers are involved in a relegation dogfight in the Premier League.

This move was supposed to be the next step in the 25-year-old's career after playing well for Preston over the past few seasons, but he has only played 22 minutes in the league so far for West Ham as he finds himself low down the pecking order.

Last season, he helped the Lilywhites finish in 11th under the guidance of Simon Grayson as part of a hard working forward line which played just as an important role defensively as offensively. He had a similar role under Alex Neil this season prior to leaving in January.

He scored 12 goals and assisted two in 42 league appearances last season as well as creating 32 chances. Therefore, he was a creative threat as well as a goalscoring threat even if the majority of the chances he created weren't converted by his teammates.

His shot accuracy of 41% also reflects how efficient he is in the final third which makes him the ideal kind of player for a team that prioritises defensive solidity with chances at a premium. A pass success percentage of 53 is low, but that fits in with the style of Preston last season.

Hugill is the ideal kind of striker for Aitor Karanka because of his willingness to work hard in order to benefit the team as well as his ability to work with limited attacking opportunities. Having him to lead the line would set the tone for the rest of the team and help complete his overhaul of the club with Ben Brereton rotating in to ensure that fatigue doesn't creep in to the performances.