Lens could bid for West Ham target Denis Zakaria with Hammers slow to find an agreement
West Ham have been slow in their negotiations to sign Juventus midfielder Denis Zakaria this summer, leading French side Lens to show their interest, according to journalist Ignazio Genuardi.
Genuardi, the former chief editor of Football365, shared via his personal Twitter account that the French side could make an attempt to bring Zakaria in on a “dry transfer”, while West Ham have been stalling over a loan move.
West Ham’s struggles to find an agreement and lack of urgency in pursuing this signing have led Lens to believe they could beat the Hammers to his signature, as they are also able to offer Champions League football, having finished second in Ligue 1 last season.
West Ham the architects of their own failure
In this case, the deal for Zakaria should be entirely in West Ham’s hands. They have been negotiating over a deal with Juventus for weeks now, but if they continue to be slow in progressing with the deal, it does seem like Lens will beat them to it.
Zakaria seemed to be West Ham’s primary target this summer, as they began negotiating the deal early on while other midfield targets are either in the early stages of interest or simply names on a list.
For West Ham, if they miss out on a player they have been in talks with for weeks, it could be a sign of their own issues. An inability to get deals over the line quickly will not go well for them if and when they go after some more highly valued targets.
The Hammers are yet to do a deal in this summer’s transfer window and will need to move quickly if they wish to get their new signings integrated ahead of the new Premier League season.
In other West Ham news, the club may already have their next superstar in the form of one academy product.