Julen Lopetegui has taken the reins at West Ham United, following the departure of David Moyes, and the challenge is now to bolster the squad accordingly ahead of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign.
The Hammers have already made two big acquisitions, signing Max Kilman from Wolves, who previously played under Lopetegui, and then highly-rated Brazilian youngster Luis Guilherme.
But now it seems like West Ham are turning their attention to the center forward position, having already been linked with Aston Villa's Jhon Duran, and Brentford talisman Ivan Toney.
West Ham transfer news
According to reports from Sky Sports News, West Ham are interested in Villarreal's Alexander Sorloth, however, no formal bids have been made as of yet. The Hammers also remain interested in Aston Villa's Duran.
The 28-year-old enjoyed a "stellar" season, as said by Zach Lowy, making 41 appearances in all competitions, scoring 26 goals, providing six assists, and totalling 2,954 minutes of football.
This would be a significant upgrade to the Hammers' current striker options, after Michail Antonio only scored the seven goals in 32 appearances last season, whilst Danny Ings scored one in 30 appearances.
How Sorloth compares to Toney and Duran
Sorloth's 32 G/A contributions blows those of Toney and Duran out of the water. Toney made 17 appearances for Brentford last season, scoring four goals, and providing four assists. Meanwhile, Duran made 37 appearances in all competitions, scoring eight times.
Of course, these are all different instances, with Sortloth being the main man at Villarreal up front, Toney spending half of the season out, and Duran waiting in the wings of inform Ollie Watkins at Villa.
Non-Penalty Goals
0.82
0.25
0.95
Shots total
2.87
3.17
3.79
Shots on target
1.26
1.30
1.33
Assists
0.19
0.12
0.00
Shot-Creating Actions
2.46
2.42
2.27
These stats show Sorloth is scoring at an extremely high rate, despite being a lower volume shooter than the others. Duran's numbers, of course, are slightly inflated due to his lack of minutes. However, these can give us an indication of the type of striker West Ham are looking at.
Sorloth's metrics also show his ability to bring others into play, being something of a target man with that 6 foot 4 frame, and the ability to create shots for himself and others, which is also shown by his 0.19 assists per 90, ranking in the top 30% for strikers in Europe.
All three of these forwards also possess excellent aerial ability, all ranking in the top 27% amongst other forwards for aerials won per 90. This shows West Ham are seeking a physically imposing center forward, that adds goals to the side, and can bring others into play.
It remains to be seen whether West Ham will go down the route of acquiring a promising striker from outside the Premier League, as they have in recent years with the likes of Gianluca Scamacca, or whether they will look to shop in the Premier League, with Duran and Toney the main options.
Either way, with Sorloth having found the net on 42 occasions in the last two campaigns, 16 more than the Brentford star, West Ham should certainly be honing on the former Palace striker if they want more firepower.
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1 ByConnor HoldenJul 23, 2024