After a busy summer transfer window, West Ham United are reportedly racing alongside Manchester United to sign a Champions League midfielder who’s unhappy at his current club.
West Ham transfer news
Despite welcoming a plethora of quality in the summer, West Ham are still feeling their way into the Premier League campaign with Danny Ings, amid all those new faces, becoming the last-minute hero against Fulham last time out. There’s no doubt that Julen Lopetegui will need time to find the perfect balance in his new squad, however, which may well come at the perfect time in a London derby against Chelsea this weekend.
When looking back on their summer window, there may even be names that Tim Steidten feels the Hammers missed out on, with Jhon Duran likely among those following his excellent start to the season at Aston Villa.
In the end, West Ham welcomed Niclas Fullkrug as a short-term solution, but are yet to see the former Borussia Dortmund star open his account. What could help the forward in January is the addition of another top Bundesliga talent.
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According to The Sun, West Ham are now racing Manchester United to sign Leon Goretzka from Bayern Munich in the January transfer window, with the midfielder reportedly unhappy at the Bavarian giants.
Losing his place under Vincent Kompany to new man Joao Palhinha, Goretzka may well be on the move in the winter window to leave West Ham in place to take full advantage. Earning a reported £292k-p/w at Bayern though, the deal won’t exactly come cheap.
Bayern’s director of sport Max Eberl recently spoke about Goretzka’s place in Kompany’s squad, saying as quoted by The Sun: “We communicated very clearly from the start. Leon knew that we were relying on Pavlo [Aleksandar Pavlovic], and that we would bring in with Palhinha and that Josh [Kimmich] would play more in the centre again.
“We’ve also said that when Leon is there and ready to face the situation, he’ll be treated completely normally. Leon’s a great guy. I like him a lot, even though he’s obviously upset at the moment. I understand that too. But that’s part of life in football.”
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A serial winner at Bayern Munich and now 29 years old, Goretzka may well get one last big move and the chance to make his mark on arguably the biggest league in European football. What’s more, the prospect of a partnership between the German and Lucas Paqueta is mouth-watering enough to believe that this is a deal that West Ham should be pursuing.
Fending off interest from Manchester United will be key, of course, but if the summer window proved anything, it is West Ham’s new-found ability to compete against the very top clubs in the transfer market. As Goretzka’s unhappiness grows, he’ll be more and more one to watch, particularly when the January transfer window swings open in a matter of months.
