WHZ View: West Ham face missing out on Julian Alvarez as Manchester United move for striker
West Ham face missing out on hotshot Argentine striker Julian Alvarez after Manchester United made their move for him, according to TyC Sports.
The Hammers had been linked with a January move for the River Plate hitman, who has scored 18 goals and registered seven assists in 21 games this season.
With a £16.8m release clause, the deal was relatively easy to complete if West Ham wanted to make it happen although they faced competition from sides such as Juventus and Real Madrid.
But according to Argentine outlet TyC Sports, Premier League outfit Manchester United have now entered the race and ‘arranged a meeting’ with his agent for Friday in England.
They say the meeting has been arranged with a ‘clear intention’ to find out the details of what it would take to get a deal done.
With West Ham being linked to other players such as Patrick Schick, it would seem that they have accepted that they’re not in the race for the ‘fantastic‘ [talkSPORT] striker anymore.
River Plate want to sign Alvarez to a new contract, which would up his release clause or completely remove it, so while the clause is active David Moyes should be all over it.
He would add a killer instinct in front of goal that the rest of the team don’t really have and would also provide competition for Michail Antonio in attack.
At just 21-years-old, he has youth on his side and could prove to be a wise investment as if he continues to shine following his move he will undoubtedly cost much more in the future.
It would be a blow for West Ham if they found themselves gazumped from such a talent after doing well to identify him initially, as they’d likely have to pay far more for another target who can bring in similar attributes to the squad.
In other West Ham news, Hammers want to sign ‘special’ midfielder from Serie A giants.