West Ham revive interest in Real Madrid-linked Julian Alvarez – report
West Ham are back in the hunt to sign Argentinian forward Julian Alvarez, according to El Intransigente.
The Hammers, along with several other clubs, were linked with the River Plate star by ESPN in June, but he stayed put in Buenos Aires.
At that point, Alvarez had only just made his senior debut for the Argentina national team, but he has since scored 15 goals and registered six assists in 16 league appearances.
Ahead of the January transfer window, El Intransigente suggest that West Ham remain interested in the 21-year-old but they face plenty of competition for his signature.
Borussia Dortmund are the latest club to be added to his list of suitors that also includes Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Inter Milan and Fiorentina.
The report adds that Alvarez currently has a £16.8m release clause, which will increase to £20m when the January transfer window ends.
A special talent
We have not watched much of Alvarez, but his statistics portray him as a very promising young talent indeed.
The forward has been the highest rated player in the Argentine Primera Division by WhoScored this season with a grade of 7.84. As well as being the league’s top scorer, he also ranks second for shots per game in 2021 (3.3) [via WhoScored].
Alvarez’s latest outing saw him score four goals in River Plate’s 5-0 thrashing of CA Patronato.
Capable of playing across the forward line, the youngster is most natural as a centre forward, a position where West Ham will want to improve their depth in case of injury to Michail Antonio.
Of course the caveat is that the Hammers are joined in the running by some of the world’s very best clubs, who will be able to offer Alvarez higher wages and the lure of Champions League football.
In other West Ham news, Glenn Hoddle has described one Hammers star as “the best in the Premier League”.
Be sure to follow West Ham Zone on Facebook and Twitter for 24/7 updates on the Hammers.