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West Ham United want to sign RB Salzburg striker Junior Adamu - Sky Sports
By Andrew Maddox.
West Ham United could turn to RB Salzburg’s Junior Adamu in their pursuit of a new striker, but they face stiff competition for his signature.
According to Sky Sports, the 21-year-old Austrian forward is attracting interest from no less than six clubs across Germany and England this summer.
Salzburg’s sister club RB Leipzig have been linked with the striking sensation, as well as Eintracht Frankfurt, Hertha Berlin, Southampton and Leeds United.
The report states that he is available for as little as €10 million, around £8.5 million, and would provide a much cheaper option to David Moyes than other strikers The Irons have been linked with.
West Ham have also been linked with Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins and Chelsea starlet Armando Broja in recent weeks, but both would cost significantly more than Adamu.
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The main draw for West Ham to Adamu is that he would finally provide solid backup to Michail Antonio.
Despite racking up 18 goal contributions last season, Antonio also went on a spell of 14 consecutive matches without scoring.
He is currently the only natural striker in the Hammers squad, with Jarrod Bowen providing occasional cover there.
A shining star
Adamu had his breakthrough in the second half of the 2020/21 season during a loan spell at Swiss side St Gallen.
Despite still being a teenager, he hit six goals in just 14 games in the Swiss Super League as he helped steer the club away from relegation.
He was given his break in the Salzburg first team during the 2021/22 season and adapted to the higher level of competition perfectly.
Despite completing 90 minutes just four times all season, Adamu hit seven goals and three assists across his 30 appearances, proving to be as effective in front of goal as Antonio in Austria, though he would need time to develop.
According to FBRef, Adamu averaged 0.39 goals per 90 minutes, marginally better than Antonio’s 0.3.
He also attempts more shots per 90 than Antonio while also getting an equal amount of his shots on target at around 33%.
Antonio is the more aggressive of the pair, completing more tackles per 90 than the Austrian youngster. He also makes 14 pressures per 90, with a near-even split across the midfield and attacking third.
This is crucial to the way The Irons play and Adamu would need time to learn from Antonio and add this to his game before replacing him.
In other West Ham United news, Frank McAvennie tells one Hammer to accept his new role as ‘the second guy’
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