West Ham lining up £30m deal for Ismaila Sarr – Alan Nixon
West Ham are targeting Watford winger Ismaila Sarr in a £30million January deal, according to The Sun’s Alan Nixon.
After the sale of striker Sebastien Haller to Eredivisie giants Ajax the Hammers are light on forward options with only Michail Antonio as a recognisable senior frontman.
As such manager David Moyes will be scouring the market in January to find a replacement and Sarr is the latest name linked with a move to the club.
According to an exclusive by Nixon and Duncan Wright in The Sun West Ham are readying a £30million bid for a player who Crystal Palace were after for more than £25million in the last window.
Per The Sun article, the Hammers are “prepared to top those numbers and test Watford.”
Sarr started for Watford in their 1-0 FA Cup defeat at Manchester United on Saturday and will be a player the Hornets are unlikely to let easily leave the club.
Pacey Sarr can emulate Antonio
The link to Sarr is an interesting one given his profile and the threats he possesses.
While he is more naturally a winger he also has experience of playing through the middle, shown in the WhoScored statistic that he has started eight Championship games upfront for Watford this season.
Sarr has scored twice in this position and his overall Championship record this season stands at four goals in 18 games.
This is not a mouthwatering total for a player that would be expected to add a sizeable number of goals in the Premier League as they bid to replace the departed Haller.
Haller was not prolific by any means but he did still score three times this season to add to the seven league goals he recorded in the last campaign.
Sarr does have some Premier League experience though as he scored five goals in 28 games last season, with a notable double in a 3-0 Vicarage Road win over Liverpool the highlight of Watford’s season before they succumbed to relegation.
Signing Sarr would represent a change in direction from Haller with his pace and direct running style a clear contrast to the latter’s aerial abilities and preference to play with his back to goal.
With Moyes preferring Antonio to spearhead his attack a move for Sarr would make sense as he has a more similar profile to the 30-year-old than Haller, with his ability to run in behind and stretch defences, though he perhaps is not as combative and strong as Antonio is.
In other West Ham news, our view on which player must seize his opportunity for the FA Cup fixture at Stockport.