Tévez, Mascherano must learn a whole new ballgame

	Argentine star Carlos Tévez has yet to score for West Ham United. He may find his transition to be harder than he thinks. Clive Mason/Getty Images
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There's no doubt Carlos Tévez is a great player. Since making his professional debut in 2001, he has proven to be one of the most gifted strikers in the world, enough so that many have considered him to be the successor of Argentine legend Diego Maradona.

With that in mind, it's difficult to understand why the three-time South American player of the year transferred to unfashionable East London club West Ham United, instead of one of Europe's major clubs such as Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Arsenal or Chelsea.

What seems suspect at this point is the involvement of English consortium Media Sports Investment and businessman Kia Joorabchian, who holds Tévez's rights and orchestrated both his and fellow Argentine national Javier Mascherano's move to England. Joorabchian is also interested in making an ownership bid for West Ham, and he had a heavy hand in management at Corinthians, Tévez and Mascherano's former club in Brazil.

But until we know more, that's a column for another day. For now, let's focus on the action on the field, the significance of one of the biggest Argentine talents in history making the jump to the competitive leagues of Europe. Anyone who has observed "Carlitos" during his time at Boca Juniors, Corinthians and the Argentine national team must be shocked by the move to West Ham. Tévez is one-of-a-kind, a player with outstanding skill, superb vision, lightning speed and a never-say-die attitude.

But all this talent is likely to go to waste at West Ham, a club that may be more ambitious than in previous seasons, but one that clearly lacks the quality to compete with the top clubs in the English Premier League. This is a team that has lived in the shadows of illustrious London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea, and although it has three FA Cups to its credit, it has never come close to winning a league championship in 111 years of existence. In fact, the Hammers' best league finish was fifth in the 1998-99 season.

No surprise then, that West Ham's surprise swoop of Tévez and Mascherano has brought new optimism to the club. Not much has changed yet, though. On the basis of the Hammers' performance so far this season, a return to the second-tier League Championship isn't out of the question.

Through five matches, West Ham has only recorded one victory, its latest loss a disappointing 2-0 home defeat to Newcastle United last Sunday. Clearly the signings of Tévez and Mascherano have done a wealth of good to the side, but this probably isn't enough to help them make a stand in one of the most difficult leagues in the world.

In the modern game, the success of a club can't come down to the ability of a couple of players, no matter their quality. West Ham management -- and in particular manager Alan Pardew -- has talked about dreaming big, about staying competitive with the Premiership powerhouses. They may have succeeded in doing this in the public eye, but on the field it has been a completely different story. This is a complicated process that can take time, and typically only works out when superstars are placed in teams already made up with top-quality players.