West Ham United transfer news: Juventus will move for Gianluca Scamacca upon Dusan Vlahovic exit amid Chelsea proposal
Juventus “will make an attempt” to sign Gianluca Scamacca from West Ham once Dusan Vlahovic leaves, Gazzetta dello Sport reports.
The Italian giants are one of a few sides who have been linked to the struggling Irons striker this season, but as their Serbian forward heads for the exit a one-in, one-out plan looks to have become clear.
According to 90min on 1 June Vlahovic has told Juve that he wants to leave, amid interest from Chelsea, Manchester United and Bayern Munich.
Assuming he goes Gazzetta reports that the Old Lady will move to replace him with the Hammers’ 24-year-old, who is reportedly aiming for a return to Italy and could be available on a loan-to-buy deal.
They additionally report that Chelsea have already offered to include Romelu Lukaku in a deal to sign Vlahovic.
Musical chairs
Just as there are a number of sides targeting central midfielders this summer, with Hammers star Declan Rice set to kick off a series of moves if he completes an exit in this window, there is a similar situation at striker.
Number nine’s come at a premium at the best of times, but with the likes of Harry Kane, Victor Osimhen, Lukaku, Vlahovic and possibly Scamacca set to move it is likely that multiple deals will be linked to each other.
The West Ham striking department was supposed to be thriving after last season’s capture of the Italian international from Sassuolo, but a year on the questions remain.
Michail Antonio looked close to leaving in January and is a potential departure this summer, while Scamacca’s struggles to adapt, whether through his own fault or that of David Moyes, saw him only score three times in the Premier League and he could be gone again after a single season.
Danny Ings arrived in the winter window but wouldn’t be enough on his own, so there could well be a lot of movement at the position just as it relates to the Irons.
If Scamacca does head back to Serie A, the loan-to-buy would surely need to be an obligation rather than an option, lest West Ham find themselves lumbered in the same situation as Chelsea with an unwanted forward that nobody else can afford to take off their hands, while still needing to spend to bring in a replacement.