By Jonty Banks

17th May, 2023 | 6:40pm

West Ham United news as David Sullivan in talks with Roma director of football Tiago Pinto

David Sullivan has held meetings with Roma’s Tiago Pinto about the position of director of football at West Ham United, according to Maisfutebol.

The Telegraph (15 May) previously reported that the Hammers had shortlisted Pinto and Brentford’s Lee Dykes for the new director of football role the club wants to introduce at the London Stadium.

The West Ham board have been unhappy with the use of their £185million outlay in the summer transfer window last year and now want to bring in a fresh face to deal with transfers strategy going forward.

Maisfutebol has now shared (17 May) that the Hammers’ approaches for Pinto’s services have been the “strongest” amid interest from both Tottenham and Liverpool.

The 35-year-old is contracted at Roma until 2024, but his exit from the Italian club would be strengthened if they missed out on Champions League football this year.

Change needed

West Ham’s transfer strategy has been scattergun over the last 12 months, with the likes of Gianluca Scamacca, Thilo Kehrer, and Danny Ings all being snapped up by the club in lucrative deals but failing to live up to their price tags.

Players of this quality don’t turn into Premier League flops overnight, so David Moyes must take some of the criticism for the failure to integrate them in during the disappointing Premier League campaign.

However, £185million is a serious investment to be making, and finishing in the bottom five of the Premier League simply isn’t good enough.

As well as Pinto, West Ham United have also been linked with Dykes, ex-Liverpool man Michael Edwards and Monaco’s Paul Mitchell for the new role at the London Stadium.

These are promising signs for the Hammers and highlight the board’s recognition that some of the transfer activity from recent years simply hasn’t been up to the level required.