West Ham are on the hunt for a new striker and have named Lyon’s Moussa Dembele on their shortlist.
What’s the latest on Moussa Dembele to West Ham?
According to Fotomac, the Irons are “interested” in the Frenchman, alongside Galatasaray, Aston Villa, and Leeds United.
The 26-year-old’s contract expires in the summer, and he is reportedly eyeing a new challenge and the opportunity to play in the Premier League is viewed as an exciting prospect.
Do West Ham need Moussa Dembele?
The forward signed for his current club Lyon on a five-year deal in the summer of 2018 for a reported transfer fee of £20m.
In his debut season in France, he bagged 15 goals, which he bettered in his second year as he netted 16 times, as per Transfermarkt.
However, the most memorable performance in this campaign was in a UEFA Champions League quarter-final with Manchester City, which his side won 3–1 thanks to his two goals as a substitute to stun Pep Guardiola’s men.
In total, the former Fulham star has notched 89 goal contributions in 171 appearances for the French outfit.
Although, the £53k-per-week has experienced a more troubled campaign and has only scored three domestic goals this season and has been displaced by Alexandre Lacazette as the focal point.
Despite this decline in form, the 6 foot 2 man still ranks in the top 25% in Europe’s top five leagues among his positional peers for non-penalty goals per 90, to show that his recent statistics shouldn’t define a player still brimming with an effervescent quality.
During his time at Celtic, Guardiola labelled Dembele as “exceptional” and he is certainly an attractive prospect for the Hammers, who are lacking a clinical and reliable striker.
Indeed, in London, Gianluca Scamacca has experienced an immensely difficult debut campaign in England and has only netted three Premier League goals, amid a growing rift with David Moyes.
In an inconsistent year, Chris Sutton feels as if the Italian has “let Moyes down” to show there is already impatience growing around the transfer.
Danny Ings and Michail Antonio are both over the age of 30, so West Ham are on the hunt for a long-term solution to solve their goal-scoring woes.
After splashing over £160m in the last summer transfer window, securing Dembele on a free transfer is relatively low-risk and would be an astute piece of business, especially when assessing the current crop of marksmen at the London Stadium.
It looks as though his arrival would be bad news for Scamacca, who would be bunted even further down the pecking order. That is certainly not a negative for the club’s supporters, however.
