Luizao exit on cards at West Ham United as transfer priorty emerges

West Ham United defender Luizao is attracting interest from Brazilian side Internacional, according to Radio Inferno.

The media outlet posted on their X account [10 December] that the Reds have the Hammers' centre-back — who the East London club tried to sell in the summer — on the list of potential targets.

Internacional are prioritising signing a defender in 2025 and have two other names on their radar.

This comes off the back of UOL journalist Andre Hernan reporting on X [9 December] that the Irons are open to letting Luizao leave on loan, with the 22-year-old keen on returning to his home country.

West Ham United should let Luizao leave

The East London club signed the Brazilian in January 2023 from Sao Paulo, but the defender hasn't made a senior appearance for the Hammers since then.

Luizao has played for the Irons' reserve squad, and it doesn't look like any of the senior management has faith in the centre-back.

In the summer, Tim Steidten — who has been questioned about his transfer strategy — made several quality additions to the backline, signing Max Kilman, Jean-Clair Todibo and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

Julen Lopetegui also has Konstantinos Mavropanos at his disposal, and the Spaniard mostly relies on a set group of players in his West Ham starting lineups.

While the former Wolves manager hasn't been able to get the best out of the players at his disposal, and Luizao could have a case for getting more minutes, it looks unlikely the Brazil national will make it into the team in the future.

The Hammers can afford to let Luizao leave in January or next summer and reinforce the squad with someone more willing to be a backup option.

In other West Ham news, a decision regarding Graham Potter has been made amid uncertainty around Lopetegui's future.

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