Gianluca Scamacca exit could be hours away at West Ham United with Josip Sutalo wanted at London Stadium
West Ham could be just hours away from the sale of wantaway striker Gianluca Scammaca which may facilitate a deal for Dinamo Zagreb’s centre-back Josip Sutalo, according to Tuttomercatoweb.
The Italian website reported (2 August) that the 23-year-old is attracting interest from Serie A sides Fiorentina and Napoli, but West Ham’s financial strength following the sale of Declan Rice and potentially Gianluca Scamacca could put them in pole position to secure the deal.
The Italian is set for a move to Inter Milan [Sky Sports Italy] which could add another £19million to the Hammers’ growing transfer budget, which could free up room for a bid for Sutalo.
Suitable
The Hammers will be looking to boost their defensive strength going into next season, and a deal for a quality young full international could prove a shrewd move.
West Ham shipped 55 goals in the Premier League last season, which while not quite as poor as the likes of Leeds United and Southampton, certainly hindered their ability to climb the table and avoid a relegation dogfight.
With Scamacca’s exit potentially set to be completed before the end of the day, the West Ham board surely now has no excuses not to be spending the significant transfer kitty they’ve built over the last few months.
Whether it be the general Premier League revenue, extra revenue from their European victory, or the £105million sale of Declan Rice, the Hammers have a lot of money to throw around.
Now, with the extra Scamacca money, the board must make additions a priority and Sutalo could be a quality fit for the Premier League. Coming from Croatian with Champions League and World Cup minutes under his belt, he could be a great understudy to Kurt Zouma and Thilo Kehrer next season.
Sutalo is an intelligent, dominant presence in his box and is adept at reading the game in front of him. The Croat can boast 2.00 blocks per 90 (97th percentile) and 2.00 tackles per 90 (82nd percentile).
He is also quite technical for a centre-back with a rare ability to progress the ball up the pitch with 0.50 successful take-ons per 90 (87th percentile) [FBRef] but may need to improve his passing if he wants a permanent spot under David Moyes.
Sutalo looks to be a good prospect, and West Ham would be smart to snatch him up amid interest from elite-level sides in Europe.
In other West Ham news, the Hammers have submitted one final blockbuster bid for one of their top midfielder targets.