West Ham are rumoured to be interested in signing Boulaye Dia but it is also believed that there are talks for some unnamed strikers.
The club are in desperate need of a new striker after selling Sebastien Haller to Dutch giants Ajax for £20 million. West Ham are rumoured to be pushing ahead with a deal for Boulaye Dia of Stade De Reims for around £15 million. Sources such as Sky Sports and ExWHUemployee have also suggested that the deal could be a ‘smokescreen’ for other deals.
The main question is who are the mystery strikers attracting the Hammer’s interest. It could be possible to work out through looking at the names already linked with the club. Interest in Dia, Patson Daka, Arkadiusz Milik and Adam Armstrong would suggest that the budget for a new striker is around £15 million.
Milik is the biggest name player in the list but is significantly older than the other options. The Polish striker also has very different attributes to Armstrong, Dia and Daka. The three are all pacey and pressing strikers. So it would be logical to think the unnamed strikers are likely to be similar to the younger three rather than the Napoli man.
The average age of the striker linked to the club are under 25-years-old. This category of player is positive as it fits the scope that David Moyes wants in his new recruits. To try and identify the players the club are in contact with GSH have taken he budget and age range and scoured through strikers to see which ones make sense.
One stand out name that popped up was Club Brugge striker Emmanuel ‘Dennis’ Bonaventure. The 23-year-old has struggled in front of goal this season and has only scored one goal this season. Though he has provided three assists. Dennis however, is quick and powerful and could fit into Moyes’ current system.
Dennis is also able to play on either wing, an attribute Moyes admirers in his players. The Scottish manager has shown that he likes to play players in ‘unnatural’ positions. This has been done with Aaron Cresswell, Pablo Fonrals, Said Benrahma, Ben Johnson and Michail Antonio.
Brugge could be tempted to cash in on their frustrated striker, and if anyone would be tempted into signing a misfiring striker, it’s West Ham. A bid of £10 million could be enough to get a deal across the line, especially as his contract is set to expire at the end of next season.
The other name that the Hammers could be targeting is a teammate of one of the known targets. Mërgim Berisha is currently playing for the same side as alleged West Ham target Patson Daka. The German striker has been in fine form this season, scoring seven goals in ten appearances in the Austrian League.
The 22-year-old is the same age as Daka, and his performances are going under the radar with all the attention on Daka. This could work in the Hammer’s favour as the Austrian side may not demand as much money as they would for Daka.
Berisha Is currently valued at £9 million and therefore could be a much cheaper option than Dia and Dennis. The German striker has played for the national youth sides and is showing plenty of promise to be a future star.
In the meantime, the most likely striker to arrive at the East London club is still Dia. The club must sign a striker before the end of the window otherwise they would be taking a big risk for the rest of the season.