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Five strikers that West Ham could sign in January – Scouting Report

By Jack Hobbs

Lille's Canadian forward Jonathan David (L) celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the UEFA Champions League first round group G football match between Lille (Losc) and Salzburg at the Pierre-Mauroy Stadium in Lille, northern France, on November 23, 2021. (Photo by Denis Charlet / AFP) (Photo by DENIS CHARLET/AFP via Getty Images)
Lille's Canadian forward Jonathan David (L) celebrates after scoring his team's first goal during the UEFA Champions League first round group G football match between Lille (Losc) and Salzburg at the Pierre-Mauroy Stadium in Lille, northern France, on November 23, 2021. (Photo by Denis Charlet / AFP) (Photo by DENIS CHARLET/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Andrea Belotti

ROME, ITALY – NOVEMBER 28: Andrea Belotti of Torino FC looks on prior the Serie A match between AS Roma and Torino FC at Stadio Olimpico on November 28, 2021 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Giuseppe Bellini/Getty Images)
ROME, ITALY – NOVEMBER 28: Andrea Belotti of Torino FC looks on prior the Serie A match between AS Roma and Torino FC at Stadio Olimpico on November 28, 2021 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Giuseppe Bellini/Getty Images) /

Andrea Belotti will be a familiar name to West Ham fans as we have been frequently linked to the Italian forward for the last couple of years. Belotti is a proper goal scorer and has the numbers to prove it.

The 28-year-old striker has scored 100 goals in the Serie A in eight seasons and has also recorded 29 assists in that time. Those are some seriously impressive numbers, especially considering the majority of Belotti’s goals have come whilst being at Torino who are at best a mid-table club in Italy.

The Italian would be a sensational addition to West Ham’s squad and would bring guaranteed goals with him. Belotti is a natural striker and has the superb movement and positional awareness that is so common in top class centre forwards.

West Ham have been crying out for a natural and prolific striker for years and Belotti could be that player because as good as Antonio is, the 31-year-old is not a natural striker. If a chance falls to the Italian in the box then the ball will almost certainly hit the back of the net.

Even better still, Belotti’s contract runs out this summer and the Italian has confirmed that this will be his last season as a Torino player. The Italian side will surely be looking to cash in on their star player this January as opposed to losing him for free in the summer. Torino have slapped a £15 million valuation on their star forward in a bid to get some money from the 28-year-old and that is an absolute bargain for a striker of his caliber.

However, there could be some issues that stop this transfer from taking place. The first one is that AC Milan have been sniffing around Belotti recently and the Italian forward is a boyhood Milan fan. Should the Rossoneri firm up their interest, it would be difficult to persuade the talisman to come to London Stadium.

Secondly, Belotti’s form this season has fallen short of the standards he has set him self over the years, with the Italian ace only managing to register two goals and an assist in nine games since missing a penalty in the Euro 2020 final vs England. Belotti has been out with tendon and muscle injuries which have kept him out of action for nine Serie A games this season. This will have played a big part in his drop of form this season but it could well put Moyes and Rob Newman off this transfer.

It would be disappointing to see such a talent slip right through West Ham’s grasp especially at a bargain price. We must hope that Moyes deems Belotti worthy of a chance in the Premier League.