West Ham United have been linked with a move for Sunderland midfielder Jobe Bellingham, and are reportedly readying a £20m bid according to a report from Fichajes. 

After an underwhelming start to the season, it’s clear that one of the main areas West Ham need to improve is the midfield. The heart of the Hammers team has been visibly slow this season, Lucas Paqueta has been well off of it and could soon be banned, and new signing Carlos Soler has failed to find consistent game time.

This means that the Hammers may need to dip back into the market to find the type of midfielder they so desperately need, and that man could be Jobe Bellingham. The little brother of Real Madrid and England superstar Jude Bellingham could make a move to East London and help transform their midfield.

Bellingham is a player with bags of energy, box-to-box with lots of defensive contributions, and is also capable of both scoring and creating goals. The midfielder has just three goal contributions in 13 Championship appearances this season but he has been crucial for Sunderland all over the pitch.

The Hammers are desperate for a midfielder who can provide speed, and balance and contribute at both ends of the pitch. Steidten and Lopetegui made a £30M+ move for French midfielder Youssouf Fofana, however, he preferred a move to Serie A giants AC Milan. The club then decided to make a move for free agent Guido Rodriguez who is a completely different player.

Jobe Bellingham is a different player from Fofana, however, he is a lot more similar to the Milan midfielder in terms of mobility than Rodriguez. Bellingham would also undoubtedly benefit the Hammers financially, as he would likely sell a lot of shirts due to his very famous surname.