West Ham considering move for Toney, Arsenal in hunt too – report
West Ham are pondering a move for prolific Championship marksman Ivan Toney as successor to the recently departed Sebastien Haller, according to the Daily Express.
Toney has lit up the Championship since signing for Brentford from League One outfit Peterborough United in the summer, scoring 16 times to join Blackburn Rovers’ Adam Armstrong at the top of the goal scorer charts.
The Irons, meanwhile, are scouring the market for a centre forward after letting club-record signing Haller leave to Ajax.
The Daily Express report that West Ham are debating a move for Toney but that “Brentford will not entertain offers for their star man this month, as he is deemed integral to their promotion push”.
If the Irons do firm up their interest with an offer they might be battling it out with Premier League rivals Arsenal for Toney’s signature, with the Daily Express also exclusively detailing the Gunners’ interest in the 24-year-old who moved to the Bees for an initial £5million just five months ago.
Manager David Moyes will be desperate to add firepower to his side with Michail Antonio struggling with injuries this season and he has no senior forward to replace him if he is struck down again.
Toney ticks all the boxes
Toney looks to be exactly the sort of player profile that Moyes is after.
He made two Premier League appearances for Newcastle United in the 2015/16 season but has been out of the top-flight ever since and has been terrorising EFL defences with his strong physique and clinical finishing abilities.
Moyes looks to have two favoured markets at the moment – the Czech Republic and the Championship.
He has picked up Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal from Czech side Slavia Prague in the past 12 months while he has also cherry-picked from the Championship.
Jarrod Bowen was brought in from Hull City last January and has begun this season in fine form, while Said Benrahma and Craig Dawson were brought in from Brentford and Watford respectively at the start of this season.
The issue with Haller at West Ham was that he seemed unable to operate up front by himself and required a partner.
He lacked mobility and was not pinning back defenders, and this is something Toney can solve with his direct running and ability to play on the shoulder of defences.
In other West Ham news, youngster joins EFL side on permanent deal after loan recall.