West Ham United boss Julen Lopetegui has kept close tabs on a £25 million player – and the Hammers are prepared to bid for him in the new year.
West Ham's transfer plans for 2025
Centre-back Maximilian Kilman, winger Crysencio Summerville, striker Niclas Fullkrug, Brazilian Luis Guilherme, defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, goalkeeper Wes Foderingham, Guido Rodriguez, Jean-Clair Todibo and Carlos Soler all put pen to paper on moves to east London before deadline day on 30th August, with technical director Tim Steidten spending £120m in the process.
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However, it is believed that the Hammers already have one eye set on the January window, and reports suggest that a new attacking player is very much on the cards for Lopetegui.
Maximilian Kilman
Wolves
€47.5m
Crysencio Summerville
Leeds United
€29.3m
Niclas Fullkrug
Borussia Dortmund
€27m
Luis Guilherme
Palmeiras
€23m
Mohamadou Kante
Paris FC
Undisclosed
Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Man Utd
€18m
Wes Foderingham
Sheffield United
Free transfer
Guido Rodriguez
Real Betis
Free transfer
Jean-Clair Todibo
Nice
Loan transfer
Carlos Soler
PSG
Loan transfer
Flynn Downes
Southampton
€17.85m
James Ward-Prowse
Nottingham Forest
Loan
Maxwel Cornet
Southampton
Loan
Nayef Aguerd
Real Sociedad
Loan
Said Benrahma
Lyon
€14.4m
Angelo Ogbonna
Watford
Free transfer
Thilo Kehrer
Monaco
€11m
Nathan Trott
FC Copenhagen
€1.5m
Ben Johnson
Ipswich Town
Free transfer
Joseph Anang
St Patrick’s Athletic
Free transfer
West Ham are planning a move for Besiktas playmaker Ernest Muci among their targets, according to some media sources, while Milan forward Samuel Chukwueze is also on Steidten’s radar heading into 2025.
The Irons will see both Danny Ings and Michail Antonio leave when their contracts expire next year, so it would make perfect sense for West Ham to bring in a striker at the turn of the year – or fresh forward options at the very least.
Lopetegui’s side have been sporadically linked with a move for Lyon star Rayan Cherki, with an update coming to light on the Frenchman and West Ham’s rumoured interest.
West Ham prepared to bid £25 million for Cherki
According to reports from Spain, West Ham are prepared to bid £25 million for Cherki, who is valued at around that amount by the Ligue 1 club. It is also believed that Lopetegui has personally been watching the player closely and views him as an ideal potential squad upgrade.
The 21-year-old made 33 French top-flight appearances last season, bagging six assists and a goal, with 10 goal contributions coming the season before that. Still very young, Cherki has plenty of room to develop, making him a pretty astute addition for his reported asking price.
“He’s really an attacking midfielder, although he can also play as a left-winger,” said Eurosport reporter Martin Mosnier last summer.
“Cherki is an exceptional dribbler, one of the first things one notices when watching him is that he appears to be ambipedal, as he can seemingly utilise both feet equally well.
“His strengths are as follows: key passes, dribbling and his ability to create something out of nothing. But, because there’s always a but, he’s not a great defensive contributor and he’s still very inconsistent – but he’s still only 19.”
