His potential may be ‘exceptional’, according to a man very well placed to pass judgement on a striker high on West Ham United’s January wishlist, but the performances of this so-called ‘Baby Lukaku’ have not been.
Only two goals in his last seven league appearances.
So while Nuno Espirito Santo has made a striker a top priority for the New Year, Promise David could do with a strong end to 2026 if he is to become the new leader of the line in East London.
Sky Sports’ Rob Dorsett last week reported that Union Saint-Gilloise ace David is a West Ham target. A potential Niclas Fullkrug replacement, at that.
But like the injury-hit German, a January move for David could come about despite, rather than because of, his recent form.
As Belgian football expert Jonathan Lange tells DH, the imposing but often-exasperating David can look like the second coming of Romelu Lukaku one minute. The very next, well, he looks less like the Antonio Conte at Inter-era Lukaku, and more like the one whose infamous cameo against Croatia in the 2022 World Cup remains the stuff of any self-respecting centre-forwards’ nightmares.
And given that Fullkrug is only the latest in a long line of expensive striking flops, West Ham United would obviously like to avoid another one.
Photo by JASPER JACOBS / BELGA MAG / Belga / AFP via Getty ImagesWest Ham United would be taking a risk with Union Saint Gilloise striker Promise David
In all competitions this season, Canada international Promise ‘Tobi’ David has ten goals across 23 matches.
But like his namesake and compatriot – Jonathan David turned his nose up at West Ham before swapping Lille for Juventus last summer – his radar has been a little off recently. Despite that, the Union SG powerhouse remains a regular in the gossip columns alongside other potential striker targets such as Joshua Zirkzee, Marcos Leonardo, Santiago Gimenez and Kaio Jorge and Ivan Toney.
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“It may seem a bit strong to talk about a ‘problem’ when referring to a player who has scored 10 goals since the start of the season,” Lange says of a man who netted 24 times in 2024/25. “But we saw so many great things from him last season.
“I don’t know if he’s the striker from [last season], running rings around everyone like Romelu Lukaku. Or if he’s the one who’s been struggling in certain stretches since the start of the season.”
“At Galatasaray, he showed a summary of what he could be; decisive but also completely upside down in that match.”
That 1-0 win in Turkey during the Champions League’s opening phase was the 2025/26 Promise David to a tee. Chances missed, the simple things made to look difficult, yet he still popped up with the only goal of the game.
“He’ll never be the best finisher,” Belgian legend Marc Degryse tells Het Laaste Nieuws. “He lacks the finesse and good feet for that. David relies on his body, on scrappy goals. And when he gets into a good groove, everything works out for him.”
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Comparisons with Romelu Lukaku are understandable – a formidable 6ft 5ins frame and a background in Belgian football – but perhaps a more fitting one would be Brian Brobbey.
Sunderland signed former West Ham target Brobbey in a £17 million deal from Ajax last summer. A striker who struggled with the patient possession football of the Dutch giants, though, has been a revelation as the battering ram targetman for a team who like to hit opponents on the break.
A raw talent. Occasionally an exasperating one. But very effective when used in the right way, and when expectations are kept somewhat in check, results may be forthcoming.
“The challenge at Promise David is to find consistency in his performance,” explains David Hubert, the Union SG head coach speaking to DH himself.
“He’s aware of this, although we shouldn’t forget where he comes from. At the beginning of last season, he was nowhere. And although he had a very good period afterward, he remains a young man still in the process. However, he is also someone with exceptional qualities.
“He can make the difference in a single moment, as we saw against Galatasaray. He has exceptional potential and it’s up to us to make the most of it.”
Canada international has been labelled the ‘Baby Lukaku’
Reports have indicated that Union SG, who plucked David from Estonian obscurity when signing him from Nomme Kalju FC in 2023, value the Ontario-born 24-year-old at around £17 million.
“[Tobi] worked a lot,” former Union SG teammate and now Sunderland enforcer Noah Sadiki told Extra Time show. “We supported him a lot too, because it was difficult [at the beginning of his time in Belgium]. But he’s become a machine.
“He can have a moment in the match where he is a bit off and loses the ball easily. But when he is 100 percent in the match, you don’t take a single ball away [from him].
“[Former Everton ace and Union SG forward coach Kevin Mirallas] calls him ‘Baby Lukaku’.”
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