West Ham are continuing to look to strengthen the squad in this January transfer window, with our club insider ExWHUEmployee providing an update.
Reporting this week on The West Ham Way Podcast following the imminent departure of Thilo Kehrer on loan to Monaco, Ex provided an update on certain players the club are interested in, whilst also news surrounding departures and injuries.
Defenders
The club have been long term admirers of Jonathan Tah of Bayer Leverkusen, with the 27 year old German international considered a top target should Nayef Aguerd depart.
His team mates Piero Hincapie and Edmond Tapsoba although these seem more likely in the summer. Dan-Axel Zagadou of Stuttgart has been on the radar for a while alongside Robert Renan of Saint Petersburg and Maxence Lacroix of Wolfsburg.
The same can be said for Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah, with the 24 year old heavily linked in the summer, and again could well be approached should we need to replace Aguerd.
Nottingham Forest defender Joe Worrall, Jacob Greaves of Hull City, Ronnie Edwards of Peterborough and Charlie Hughes of Wigan are all considered players of interest.
Max Kilman of Wolves is understood to be a player the club highly admire, with the interesting element being that the Midlands club hold an interest in both Aaron Cresswell and Danny Ings.
Sunderland defender Daniel Ballard is another place of interest, with the 24 year-old impressing for the Black Cats. He would also fit the home-grown quota.
The club are also looking at bringing in a new left-back, with long term target Ian Maatsen a possibille option, especially with Chelsea eager to raise funds.
Leif Davis of Ipswich is also a player the club admire.
Forwards
As has been reported previously, Serhou Guirassy is a top target this window, with Tim Steidten working on a potential deal for the Stuggart hitman. Although competition for his signature is expected to be intense.
Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah of Arsenal are players very much on the radar, especially as Arsenal look to spend and therefore need funds to do so. However Nelson is understood to want to remain in north London at this stage.
Despite being a player of some interest, Jadon Sancho now looks set to re-join Borussia Dortmund on loan – however this does open up the possibility of the German side allowing Donyell Malen to depart. The 24-year old was in Arsenals academy so could quality as home-grown.
Jonathan Rowe of Norwich and Jack Clarke of Sunderland are players the club are keeping tabs on and could make a move for.
Outgoings
Thilo Kehrer is now on the brink of joining Monaco, as was exclusively revealed by The West Ham Way on Patreon – which is a loan deal with a fee of £500k. The French side will pay his wages in full and have an obligation to buy uiun the summer based on appearances – with a fee agreed at around £9m.
It’s understood the player preferred a move back to Germany, however with the European Championships on the horizon he accepts the move is needed to get back playing regularly.
Max Cornet’s future at West Ham appears bleak, with the club open to offers for the former Burnley forward. There is significant concern regarding his ability to pass a medical with the calf issue he sustained last year. There are however French clubs keen alongside Everton.
Nayef Aguerd has interest from Saudi clubs along with French and Spanish, although at this stage Saudi lead the chase. The club are willing to listen to offers however would want to recoup the £30m outlay made in 2022.
Said Benrahma has strong interest from Lyon, with the club open to accepting offers for the former Brentford winger.
Other News
The club are eager to get Calum Marshall tied down to a new long term deal. There is interest from others to take the striker on loan, with Leyton Orient, Oxford, Swindon and West Brom all interested.
The reason for Vladimir Coufal’s absence for the draw against Brighton was down to illness, and nothing to do with his current contract situation. The player is not as unhappy as reports have made out, as the club activated an extension that was agreed in his existing deal.
Michail Antonio appears set to make his return to action, with hope that he will play a part in our FA Cup 3rd Round clash with Bristol City this Sunday.
