**Mauro Zárate has revealed that [West Ham United](https://sportwitness.co.uk/tag/west-ham/) were the club that surprised him the most, as he didn’t expect their fanbase to be so large.**
Zárate has been speaking to Diretta.it this week about his career. [La Lazio Siamo Noi](https://www.lalaziosiamonoi.it/news/zarate-snobba-la-lazio-l-inter-e-il-club-migliore-della-mia-carriera-sui-tifosi-243247) report on his comments regarding West Ham.
**West Ham spell**
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Mauro Zárate enjoyed a varied career, starting in Argentina with Vélez Sarsfield before a move to Al-Sadd in 2007. A year later he was on loan at Birmingham City, before moves to Lazio, Inter Milan and then back to Vélez.
He then joined West Ham in 2014, where he managed seven goals and three assists in 29 games over two seasons, before joining Fiorentina in 2016.
His spell as a Hammer is not one that can be described as memorable by any stretch. But Zárate is happy to admit West Ham was the club which surprised him most.
_“The best team of my career was Inter, but the one that surprised me the most was West Ham. I was surprised by the number of fans. I wasn’t expecting such a big club,”_ he admitted.
**A backhanded compliment**
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While the statement is very much a compliment, it’s a bit of a backhanded one from the Argentine. He clearly thought West Ham were a small club and was quickly corrected on that when he arrived.
Fortunately, they are comments which are unlikely to do much damage to his reputation among the West Ham fan base.
He remains well-regarded by West Ham fan, who remember his individual skill and high-impact goals. They certainly helped to cover up inconsistencies in his game and general form.
Mauro Zárate is, perhaps, the definition of a cult icon. And it seems while he made an impact, the club also left an impression on him. So much so, he’s got them above his favourite club Inter in one regard at least.