West Ham want to sign Fenerbahce defender Attila Szalai
West Ham want to sign Fenerbahce star Attila Szalai and the defender could be a big upgrade on Fabian Balbuena.
The Hungary international joined the Turkish outfit in January but has not taken long to impress, thus sparking interest from Aston Villa, Newcastle, Sevilla and the Irons, per Aspor.
Fenerbahce are determined to get at least €25million [£21.7million] for the centre-back, and will reportedly wait until after Euro 2020 to sell him.
Fabian Balbuena’s contract is up in the summer and with Lazio interested in signing the defender [Gazetta Dello Sport] West Ham would need to get a replacement – Szalai is an ideal option.
Szalai is very unproven so it would undoubtedly be a risk to bring him to the Premier League, particularly at the price Fenerbahce have set.
But he is only 24 and has had a great impact at the Super Lig club, with manager Emre Belozoglu characterising him as an “exemplary” figure [Fenerbahce RH+].
Since he signed Fenerbahce have lost just three of the 16 league games he has played and they have a shot at winning the title.
He seems to be getting better and better and has proven himself at a decent standard, achieving 1.3 tackles and 1.4 interceptions per game since arriving in Turkey [WhoScored].
Szalai has been equally impressive on the international stage too, achieving 1.3 tackles and 3.3 interceptions per 90 minutes in the recent World Cup qualifiers.
On top of his defensive skill, Szalai possesses good technical qualities, and boasts a pass accuracy of 86%, which means he should suit the Premier League.
Adding him as a back-up option in place of Balbuena seems a sensible thing to do, and if the club has any sense they will make a move before this summer’s Euros.
If he impresses in that competition his value and the number of interested parties will both increase, and we could miss out on a useful signing.
In other West Ham news, London club want to sign West Ham ‘Future star’, contract set to expire – report.