Facundo Buonanotte loan sanctioned as West Ham United ready next transfer
West Ham are keen to add to their midfield this summer as Graham Potter looks to put a disappointing last campaign behind him.
The Hammers lost Carlos Soler at the end of last season as he returned to Paris Saint-Germain following his loan, and their search for a replacement has taken months.
Juventus’ Douglas Luiz and Southampton’s Mateus Fernandes have been on the shortlist of midfielders, but Potter appears to be exploring his options.
With David Sullivan seemingly in no rush to invest this summer, the Irons have now turned to Brighton’s Facundo Buonanotte.
West Ham face Premier League competition for Buonanotte
With Southampton having increased their price tag for Fernandes to around £50million, a transfer for the Portuguese midfielder doesn’t appear viable.
The Hammers also look set to miss out on another midfield target in Aston Villa’s Aaron Ramsey, who appears to be nearing a move to Newcastle.
With their midfield options exhausted, West Ham could now turn to Buonanotte.
The Argentine has now been made available for a loan move by the Seagulls, according to the print edition of the Daily Mail (13 August, pg 65).
- The 20-year-old created seven big chances on loan with Leicester last season in 31 League games
- He scored five goals from 36 shots, with a shot-on-target percentage of 33.3%
- Buonanotte offers versatility and can play all across the attack
Buonanotte spent last season on loan with Leicester, where he was a bright spark despite relegation.
The youngster has featured intermittently for Brighton, but they are keen to offer him first-team football and prefer to send him on loan to a Premier League side.
West Ham face competition from Leeds and Nottingham Forest, with Tottenham also keeping tabs.
West Ham will move on from Fernandes
The Hammers look set to swiftly move on from Fernandes.
Should they look at other targets, the decision will frustrate supporters who have gotten more and more annoyed with the lack of incomings this summer.
However, at a potential £50million, that is simply too much for a youngster who contributed towards just seven goals last season.
Equally, Buonanotte won’t impress supporters, and the Hammers must look at better targets elsewhere.
Sign up for the West Ham Zone WhatsApp channel and turn on notifications to have all the latest, breaking West Ham United news sent straight to your phone.