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

It is quite possibly the worst kept secret that David Moyes is after a first team striker in January. West Ham have just one senior striker on their books currently and it has been that way now for almost a whole year, which for a Premier League team who are also in the Europa League is simply shocking.

Sebastien Haller was shipped off to Ajax last January for around £20 million after the Ivorian forward failed to really hit the mark at the Hammers. Whether that was due to Haller failing to adapt to English football, the fact that he wasn’t utilised in the right way or that he just didn’t suit West Ham is no longer relevant.

Haller has since gone on to absolutely smash it at Ajax and has recorded 35 goals and 13 assists in 48 games in all competitions, while also managing to break Erling Haaland’s Champions League goalscoring record. All this proves that, in my opinion, West Ham should have kept Haller as they had the perfect goalscoring machine just sitting on the bench.

The fact that Haller was sold almost a year ago and that no replacement has been brought in during that time is utter madness, especially considering the injury record of Michail Antonio. If the Hammers are to have a chance at replicating last season’s heroics in the League and potentially having a go at winning a cup, then a new forward simply needs to come in this window.

As per usual, thousands of names have been thrown around with all sorts of figures and fees being mentioned but some of the same names keep on reoccurring.

So here are five strikers that I think West Ham could and should look to sign this January:

Ben Brereton Diaz

One of this season’s surprise stars in the second division, the Chilean international has been in fine form for Blackburn Rovers so far. The 22-year-old has scored 20 goals in the Championship and has helped fire Blackburn into third place heading into the new year.

The former Nottingham Forest forward is currently second in the goalscoring charts in the Championship, bested only by Alexsander Mitrovic who has bagged an astonishing 22 goals for second placed Fulham.

Brereton-Diaz has also been replicating his good form on the international stage for Chile and has scored three times for his nation, two of which came in this summer’s Copa America.

The Stoke born strikers rise has been rapid and with that there are always going to be clubs circling. West Ham are amongst the likes of Newcastle, Brighton and Leeds who are all interested in bringing the 22-year-old to the Premier League.

Blackburn have reportedly slapped a £20 million price tag onto their star player as they look to regain promotion to the top division for the first time since dropping out in 2010.

£20 million in today’s market is nothing, especially for a player in such great goalscoring form. Brereton could be an absolute steal if Moyes can get the price right and he would bring something new and fresh to West Ham’s front line.

However, this is the first time in his career that Brereton has been finding the back of the net on a consistent basis. His best goal scoring seasons prior to this year came last season where he scored seven goals and registered five assists and in 2017/18 for Nottingham Forest where he managed just five goals and three assists.

Whilst he certainly fits into Moyes’ category of young and hungry players, Brereton hasn’t got the goalscoring experience that would make him the complete package. For example, when West Ham signed Jarrod Bowen from Hull City two years ago Bowen had scored 14 goals in 2017/18, 22 goals in 2018/19 and a further 16 goals in 2019/20 which earned him his move.

Brereton Diaz would be a decent signing but it would be a little disappointing to see us sign the Chilean when there are so many strikers in the market who could be a better fit. This would be a high risk signing but if it were to pay off then West Ham would surely be reaping the rewards for many years to come.

Andrea Belotti

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.

Adam Hlozek

One of the most likely outcomes of this transfer window is that Adam Hlozek will join West Ham. The Hammers have been interested in the Czech wonderkid for the last year and this could finally be the window where a solid move materialises.

The 19-year-old striker has been in good form again this season, scoring five goals and registering an impressive 11 assists in 18 league appearances. Hlozek has kept up his impressive form from last season where he managed 15 goals and 11 assists in just 19 league games according to TransferMarkt.

The Czech forward is clearly an outstanding talent and has the potential to become an absolute superstar in world football. Moyes just needs to make sure that Hlozek achieves this at the London Stadium. West Ham were very interested in signing the player in the summer but the 19-year-old signed a new deal with Sparta Prague after his contract had entered its final year.

The main reason why this transfer seems so likely is because of West Ham’s new investor, Daniel Kretinsky. The Czech billionaire who bought a 27% stake in the Hammers back in October, is also the owner of Czech club Sparta Prague and it very keen to establish a good relationship between the two sides. Kretinsky’s aim is to use Sparta and Czech links to feed West Ham and this will surely boost our chances of landing Hlozek, should Moyes deem the Czech the right man for the job.

The 19-year-old ace is valued at around £17 million by TransferMarkt which would be a good deal for both parties and if anything it could turn out to be an absolute bargain in the future.

Hlozek is a special talent and possesses good pace, lethal finishing and great awareness for a such a young player. It is frightening to think how good he could become under Moyes, especially after the Scotsman’s recent success with Czech players.

This is a transfer to keep an eye on as it is probably the most likely to happen on this list and has the potential to be a massive move for the future. Come on agent Tomas Soucek!

Giovanni Simeone

Another name from last January, Giovanni Simeone has been in emphatic form this season for Hellas Verona and has once again put himself onto Moyes’ radar. Since joining on loan from Cagliari in the summer, the Argentine forward has bagged an impressive 12 goals in 17 league games in the Serie A this season and is the currently the third highest scorer in the league. Simeone has also picked up three assists along the way according to TransferMarkt.

The 26-year-old forward is a great player and he has been showcasing his class all season for the Italian side. Simeone has many of the qualities needed to succeed in the Premier League: he is comfortable with both feet, possesses great finishing ability, is good in the air and he will be well suited to the pace and physical nature of the league.

Another key attribute is the passion that Simeone plays with, which without a doubt will have been passed down to him by his dad Diego, manager of Atletico Madrid.

The Argentinian striker has scored some sensational goals this season, there have been no scrappy or lucky finishes, they have all been quality and well-placed strikes. When he is on form, Simeone is a beast in front of goal and he showcased this against in a 4-1 win over Lazio back in October where he scored all four of Verona’s goals.

The forward certainly fits into the caliber of player that Moyes is looking to bring into the club and he boasts a reasonable transfer fee as well with his price set at around £15 million according to TransferMarkt.

However, there could be a complication with this transfer as Simeone is only on loan at Hellas Verona and the Italian club have an option to buy Simeone for £10.2 million at the end of the season, which they intend to trigger.

This could make it very difficult for West Ham to bring the 26-year-old to the East London. The only hope is that Cagliari have an option to recall Simeone in the loan deal, meaning we would be able to negotiate directly with the selling club. There are ways around the issue and it is certainly possible for West Ham to sign the player as long as he is the striker that Moyes wants.

Simeone is a great talent and would be a great fit for the club but we will have to see whether Moyes feels like he is the right man for the job and whether we can negotiate around Verona’s option to buy.

We are also interested in his teammate Antonin Barak.

Jonathan David

The big name this window that has got every West Ham fan excited in this window is Lille striker Jonathan David. The 21-year-old Canadian international has been linked with some of the Europe’s biggest clubs after bursting onto the scene in France during the 2020/21 season following a move from KAA Gent.

David was a massive part of Lille’s title winning campaign last year and after a slow start, bagged 13 goals in his first season for the club, helping them win their first Ligue 1 title in 10 years. The Canadian has carried his form straight into this season and has scored 16 goals in 27 appearances so far, with 12 of those strikes coming in the league and three of them in the Champions League. The Lille ace is quick, strong, has good positional awareness and is a great finisher which would make him a fantastic addition to West Ham’s front line.

While it may seem like West Ham have no chance of signing the 21-year-old with the likes of Real Madrid, Arsenal and Liverpool reportedly circling, there are several reasons why Hammers fans should remain hopeful.

For starters the French league is in a bit of a financial crisis meaning most of Ligue 1’s clubs will be forced into selling their prized assets in order to raise the finances needed. Lille are just the same and will be willing to sell David as long as suitable offer comes in for their talisman.

Secondly, it was reported by Italian site Calcio Mercato, that the Canadian forward wants to move to West Ham this month which gives us a massive boost in our chase. As well as this, David has been ‘liking’ several West Ham related Instagram posts which would be also be an indicator as to where the player is hoping to move to. This obviously could mean nothing but it is also just as likely to indicate something.

The only issue with this potential deal is the competition that West Ham will have to battle off. The likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Liverpool and Arsenal are all circling the Lille forward and it will be incredibly difficult for us to compete with these clubs. It is definitely possible but it doesn’t look promising.

There is no doubt about it that signing Jonathan David would be an incredible piece of business for West Ham, not just for the team but for the club as a whole. The capture of a player of David’s caliber would highlight just how far West Ham have come under Moyes and it would prove to players like Declan Rice and Jarrod Bowen that the club is moving in the right direction and that their futures are at the London Stadium.

To conclude, West Ham simply must sign a striker in some form this window as failure to do so would critically damage our chances in the league, the Europa League and in the FA Cup.

We will linked with dozens more players but in my opinion we should be aiming for several of players on this list. All of the strikers here have been linked to us by the reliable ExWHUemployee so there is definitely a chance that one of these forwards may join us this month.

Additionally, I believe Moyes should go all guns blazing for Jonathan David as he would be a simply world class signing and it would show a massive state of intent as a club. If this was to fail then I would make sure that we secure the signing of Adam Hlozek as the 19-year-old is a star in the making. The addition of either of these two players would massively boost our chances of having an even better season than our previous campaign.