West Ham United are hoping the attraction of becoming a regular Premier League No.9 could give them an upper hand in any chase to sign Hugo Ekitike in the New Year.
The Hammers have continued to watch his situation after pursuing the striker last summer, sources have communicated to TEAMtalk. He opted to join Paris Saint-Germain and as such seemed out of reach for the foreseeable future, yet a lack of game-time in the French capital has led to new hope he could be attainable.
TEAMtalk has been reporting how West Ham are seriously contemplating new options for their attack with Victor Boniface, Serhou Guirassy, Adam Hlozek and Karim Konate all among transfer candidates if the recruitment team do proceed with a new signing.
But the new uncertainty around Ekitike means he will once again be under consideration as a more serious target too.
Newcastle United are long-term admirers of Ekitike and looked primed to sign him at one stage. They are also back on the scene in this hunt, with the player being tipped to be available on loan in the January window.
Other clubs around Europe will be keen too but West Ham insiders feel their specific situation might prove to be enticing if this battle is allowed to get underway.
Hammers hopeful Ekitike can solve problem
The club have been short of goals in attack and with no obvious contender to Michail Antonio as the central forward, West Ham could be the perfect place for Ekitike to finally make his big arrival. Clubs like Newcastle would not be able to offer such promise over potential game-time.
There is much praise around him but, for all the promise, Ekitike has made just one eight-minute appearance for PSG this season and, in turn, he is likely to seek a move.
West Ham have Danny Ings as back-up to Antonio but he does not seem trusted in the role and has an uncertain future himself.
Jarrod Bowen has hit the net nine times this term and is the most reliable goalscorer in the team but with the club ambitious and seeking to improve on an inconsistent start to the campaign, the qualities of a player like Ekitike could help spark an improvement.
READ MORE: West Ham ‘monitoring’ disastrous Chelsea signing, as two other London rivals queue up for striker
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