To salvage their hopes of signing Viktor Gyokeres, West Ham must act quickly and propose a recent acquisition in exchange, reports the HammerNews. The club has been strongly linked with a move for the Coventry City striker in the summer transfer window. Just this month, Gyokeres himself expressed his interest in joining West Ham. However, reports of secret talks between Gyokeres and Portuguese side Sporting have raised concerns for David Moyes and his team.
The Sun has stated that Moyes has personally attended several Coventry games to assess Gyokeres, as the forward is seen as a perfect replacement for Michail Antonio and reminiscent of Marko Arnautovic. Nonetheless, the pressure is mounting on West Ham to rescue their chances, as Sporting is reportedly close to securing a €20 million deal for Gyokeres, as reported by Record.
To save their hopes of signing a promising player like Gyokeres, West Ham must act urgently and propose a swap deal involving a recent signing. In January, with the club facing potential relegation and struggling to score goals, Moyes brought in Danny Ings from Aston Villa for a fee that could eventually reach £15 million. However, Ings has struggled to adapt to playing as a lone striker in Moyes’ system, and doubts have been raised about his effectiveness at the Premier League level.
Considering West Ham’s aspirations to compete at the higher levels of the Premier League, acquiring young, talented, and powerful players like Gyokeres becomes crucial. Offering Ings to Coventry as part of a deal to secure Gyokeres could soften the blow for Coventry, as they would receive a player capable of leading the Championship scoring charts and spearheading a promotion push.
Even if it starts as a season-long loan with an option to buy or an obligation in case of Coventry’s promotion, such an arrangement would benefit all parties involved. West Ham would find it worthwhile to subsidize a significant portion of Ings’ wages for the season if it helped secure the signing of Gyokeres. Ings, at this stage of his career, could establish himself as the go-to striker for clubs aiming for promotion.
West Ham should seize this opportunity and take advantage of Ings’ situation while they still have a chance to secure the services of Gyokeres.