West Ham are reportedly on the cusp of signing a striker according to the club’s co-chairman David Sullivan.
Speaking to Sky Sports News on Tuesday, Sullivan revealed the Hammers were closing in on a loan-deal with option to purchase. He said:
We are looking at a possibility of bringing in a striker on loan with the condition to buy in the next seven days. If I told you [who it was], you wouldn’t believe it. I can’t tell you [what league they play in] then you’d know who it is.
It’s like when we signed [Manuel] Lanzini from — I don’t know what league he was in, but I call it Saudi Arabia, wherever he came from. We’re signing him from a very strange league but he has played in higher leagues, but it may not happen, it’s just a possibility.
Slaven Bilic does have injury worries in that department, with both Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho on the sidelines – explaining the potential need for some reinforcements.
The Daily Mail have linked the London club with three strikers recently, all of which could fit the bill.
Emmanuel Emenike
The Nigerian forward is currently at Abu Dhabi club Al Ain but is reportedly having that deal cut short.
He has played in both Turkey and Russia previously – at Fenerbahce and Spartak Moscow respectively.
His agent was supposedly in London earlier this week to try and seal a deal for his client.
Demba Ba
The former Chelsea and Newcastle player is well known to Premier League fans and also to Hammers manager Slaven Bilic (they worked together at Besiktas in Turkey).
He’s currently playing in China for Shanghai Shenhua but would surely be more than open to a move back to England.
Alexandre Pato
The Brazilian attacker has been linked with Chelsea recently, but he could be on West Ham’s radar.
The Corinthians-owned player – on loan currently at Sao Paulo – has 38 goals in his 95 appearances for Soberano.
The verdict?
All three of the above players fit the description that David Sullivan used on Tuesday, after he said the player was currently in a ‘strange league’.
Whoever is chosen would add vital depth to Bilic’s squad ahead of his push for a lofty league finish.
