Bulgarian striker Bojinov passes West Ham medical – reports
Bulgarian media reported on August 19 that former Manchester City striker Valeri Bojinov has successfully passed his West Ham medical exam and joined the team’s training session.
The reports said that a decision from the West Ham hierarchy on whether to sign Bojinov to a contract is likely to come later this week.
Bojinov is said to be very motivated in his attempts to secure another chance in the English Premier League, his previous spell at Manchester City being disrupted by major knee and Achilles injuries. The striker made only 11 appearances for the Manchester club, scoring one goal.
He travelled to London at the weekend, missing his current side Levski Sofia’s win over Botev Plovdiv in the domestic league. Bojinov has spent the second half of last season at Levski in an attempt to get a once-promising career, derailed by injuries and distractions off the pitch, back on track.
A teenage sensation in Italy, he was heralded as brightest Bulgarian prospect in a decade, securing a transfer to Fiorentina aged only 18, before helping Juventus win promotion back to the Serie A after being relegated as a result of the Calciopoli match-fixing scandal.
After joining City on a four-year contract in 2007, he left the club after only two years in England, moving back to Italy to Parma on loan. His career from that point entered a downward spiral and he was banned by Sporting Lisbon for taking and missing a potentially match-winning spot kick – against the coaching staff’s wishes – in a league cup match.
After several loan spells with Italian clubs, Bojinov came to Bulgaria but has been underwhelming at Levski, as the club finished fifth in the league last season.
(Bojinov, in blue, jumps for the ball during the match against CSKA Sofia on July 27. Photo: levski.bg)
