West Ham United face £17m auction for Jakub Kiwior after World Cup causes value inflation
West Ham will have to cough up £17million for Spezia defender Jakub Kiwior according to La Nazione, with his value skyrocketing after his World Cup campaign with Poland.
Kiwior helped Poland to the round of 16 in Qatar before his side suffered a 3-1 defeat to France on Sunday afternoon.
The 22-year-old currently plies his trade in Italy with Serie A side Spezia, but his impressive performances for club and country have seen a handful of clubs begin to circle for his signature.
According to La Nazione, West Ham, AC Milan, Napoli, Rome and Juventus are all keen to sign him, but Spezia have inflated their asking price after his impressive World Cup performances.
As per the report, all five interested clubs will have to wait until June 2023 to begin the bidding war, and Spezia have already placed a £17million price tag on their prize defender.
Cough it up
West Ham could find themselves suddenly short of defenders in the summer. Craig Dawson has been linked with a move north to be with his family, Angelo Ogbonna’s contract expires and Kurt Zouma is still suffering from his ongoing knee problems.
David Moyes can’t afford to just leave himself with newcomers Thilo Kehrer and Nayef Aguerd after they struggled to settle in to the club from their summer moves.
Centre-back reinforcement is essential and Kiwior looks like an ideal fit for the Hammers.
The Polish international is young, physical, powerful and fresh from a very good World Cup campaign. While that may have inflated his price, £17million is still a great deal for West Ham.
Fending off the likes of AC Milan and Juventus might be a more difficult task, but West Ham can always hope that the lure of London and the Premier League helps them convince Kiwior to sign.
Pushing in January for a deal could also stand West Ham in good stead for the summer, where a move looks far more likely.