West Ham United and technical director Tim Steidten are readying an opening offer for a former Tottenham forward.
West Ham targeting more attacking additions after Guilherme
The Irons have already brought in a new face in the final third this summer, with Brazilian winger Luis Guilherme the first to arrive from Palmeiras. A deal for the teenager reportedly cost more than £25m, with Steidten sharing his delight at being able to bring Guilherme to the London Stadium.
“We are really happy that Luis Guilherme is now a West Ham United player,” said Steidten. “He is a very exciting young talent who we have followed for some time, and once we became aware that he was available, Julen and I were determined to bring him to London.
“Luis has enjoyed a fantastic start to his professional career with Palmeiras – naturally a wide player but with the flexibility to play across other attacking positions, which is an important and valuable factor in the modern game. He is technically very gifted, but also has very good physical qualities – great pace, strength and stamina, and these are traits that will help him to adapt to the demands of the Premier League and English football.”
Further forward additions are on the agenda ahead of Julen Lopetegui’s first season in charge. For example, an enquiry has been made for Everton’s Dominic Calvert-Lewin, whereas Borussia Dortmund’s Karim Adeyemi has also been offered to the Hammers.
Preliminary talks have also been opened for Arsenal’s Reiss Nelson, however, a former Spurs forward appears to be another player of interest to West Ham.
West Ham preparing Steven Bergwijn bid
According to Caught Offside, West Ham and Steidten are preparing to submit an opening €20m (£16.8m) offer to sign Ajax forward Steven Bergwijn this summer.
The Hammers’ interest is reportedly most advanced, with Crystal Palace and Marseille also keen on the Dutch forward, however, Ajax could hold out for up to €35m (£29.3m), meaning the Irons’ proposal could be swiftly turned down.
The 26-year-old is under contract with Ajax until 2027 and is the current club captain of the Eredivisie giants. He enjoyed a positive individual 2023/24 campaign last time out, scoring 12 league goals in 24 appearances.
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Bergwijn also spent more than two years in London with Spurs, where he was praised by former Tottenham manager Antonio Conte, who called him a forward who can play anywhere across the front line in 2021.
“We are talking about a player with important qualities. It was a shame for me that he left during the international match, because I would have liked to have gotten to know him better during this break. It was of course not a shame for him, because he scored and qualified with the Dutch national team for the World Cup.
“Obviously he has a lot of quality. He’s good one-on-one, he’s quick and he can score goals. We are working with him and he understands what I want from him. For me, he is one of the forwards and someone who can play in the three positions up front. I’ll have to make an important evaluation, but Steven is in my squad and I’m counting on him.”