West Ham reportedly competing with Newcastle and Leicester for Vincent Aboubakar
West Ham are in the hunt for Vincent Aboubakar along with Newcastle and Leicester City, according to a report from Kick442 in Cameroon.
The striker is fresh off the back of scoring eight goals to take home the Africa Cup of Nations Golden Boot and the past six seasons have apparently “tidied” him to the point where he is a “ready-made scorer”.
The Al Nassr goal-scorer has been linked to the Hammers since he was at Porto, and with cash-rich Newcastle now interested the chances of a long-mooted move to the Premier League may have increased.
The Kick442 report says: “The big forward also attracting interest from West Ham United and Leicester City could be on his way back to Europe this summer following his exploits at the 2021 African Cup of Nations.”
Has to be somebody
With the Cameroonian having been linked to the Irons since as far back as 2016 (Sport Witness) without anything materialising it is difficult to see why now would be any different.
But with David Moyes still on the look out for striking help in light of Michail Antonio being the loan central option in the senior squad it could be worth investigating in the summer.
The manager and the club have drawn a lot of heat from fans and media for not strengthening during January, and the 30-year-old’s international exploits suggest he could contribute.
His age would count against him as a long term option but cost-wise should prevent a price being prohibitive.
The club must be aware of him if he has been linked for such a long period, so there must be something about the player that has dissuaded them from making a deal happen.
His playing ability is reportedly seen as Premier League-ready but Kick442 suggest he has struggled with English which could hamper him under a British manager.
If he turns up at Newcastle before next season and starts banging in goals Hammers fans will not be remotely amused though.
In other West Ham news, the Magpies have been strengthened ahead of their Hammers clash at the weekend.