New West Ham boss Slaven Bilic has already been throwing his weight around in the transfer market since his appointment – and he’s not finished yet.
Having brought in the likes of Dmitri Payet and Angelo Ogbonna, his fast and shrewd actions in this summer window have seen the squad already strengthened dramatically as The Hammers prepare for a European run, having clinched a Europa League place for fair play.
Strength in depth is key but Bilic looks to be picking up players who will slot straight into the first team – and Javier Hernandez is next on his shopping list, according to Goal.com
Their sources claim that West Ham have made a bid of around £9 million for ‘Little Pea’, who at 27 years old, has plenty of time left in the bank and will want to be playing week in, week out.
Chicharito joined Manchester United in for £7 million in 2010 and has made 134 appearances for the club, scoring 45 goals – many as a substitute, much in the same vein as United legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
He is seemingly not in favour under Louis van Gaal, having spent 2014/15 appearances on loan at Real Madrid. Despite being a ‘super-sub’ type of player, his value to his new manager is low.
A move to West Ham would likely take his career in a very different direction as he would likely start most matches – something which he has not done consistently since his time in Mexico, where he nearly quit football through lack of heart before Sir Alex Ferguson came calling.
He is a quick, tricky little striker and would bring good balance to the Hammers forward line, nipping into small gaps and sniffing out chances that the more physical Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho may not get to. An instinctive goal scorer could be an ideal signing for Bilic and co, as Payet is the type of player who will create chances for Hernandez to snatch.
United will want to make profit on their Mexican international as he was relatively unknown when they signed him five years ago, but is now recognised all over Europe and would be an asset to any team. Their asking price is likely to be around £10 million.
