West Ham United must beat Crystal Palace to Hugo Ekitike as Michail Antonio position emerges
With the January transfer window around the corner, West Ham United will likely have one position in mind when they consider adding to their squad for the second half of the campaign.
The Irons need to be in the market for a striker as currently, David Moyes’ options are incredibly limited at the London Stadium, with the out-of-form Michail Antonio and Danny Ings the only recognised first-team centre-forwards.
Having suffered an injury during the international break, Antonio looks set to return to the matchday squad against Fulham on Sunday 10 December, but reports have suggested that the Jamaican international won’t be guaranteed to start [Claret & Hugh, 7 December].
“Insiders” at West Ham have suggested that Jarrod Bowen could continue to operate in the number nine position for the foreseeable future, even if Antonio is fit and ready to start, it is not set in stone that he would win back his place.
Bowen has led the the line in Antonio’s absence over the last few weeks, but the consensus is that the England international is nowhere as impactful when deployed through the middle, as he is when in his favoured right-wing role.
In an ideal world, the Irons would have a prolific number nine in their ranks, to allow Bowen to return to his wide role and now that it appears as though Antonio has fallen out of favour, West Ham should launch a bid to bring Hugo Ekitike to East London this January.
The Hammers are known admirers of the French forward and were interested in signing him during the summer, and are reportedly ready to reignite that interest when the transfer window opens again in under a month [Evening Standard, 6 December].
Moyes’ side are set to face competition from Premier League rivals Crystal Palace however, with the Eagles also eyeing a move for the 21-year-old. The Irons cannot afford to be beaten to his signature now that they seemingly don’t have a trusted senior striker in their ranks.
Ings has barely stepped foot on the pitch in the Premier League this season, playing only 130 minutes despite making nine appearances, Divin Mubama has been made to wait from the bench all while Antonio has struggled to find the net consistently.
Ekitike would not only provide a solution to this current number nine problem in Moyes’ squad, but at 21 he would fit Tim Steidten and West Ham’s project of buying younger players with greater potential that was employed in the summer window.
The young striker sensation has barely played this season having been rooted to the PSG bench, but has shown he can find the net consistently at the highest level. In the 2021/22 campaign, he scored 10 goals in 15 starts in Ligue 1 for Reims.
It feels as though West Ham have the perfect solution staring them right in the face this January, they just have to make sure that they don’t let it slip through their fingers straight into the hands of Crystal Palace.
In other West Ham news, Pablo Fornals could be sold during the January transfer window despite extending his current contract