West Ham get chance to sign league-leading star who'd thrive in Championship
West Ham United have reportedly set their sights on a star midfielder from the Saudi Pro League.
Nuno Espirito Santo isn't blessed for central midfield depth at the moment, and that situation only looks set to get worse.
Mateus Fernandes is sure to leave West Ham this summer, whilst Soungoutou Magassa could be another heading for the exit door.
The Hammers know they need to raise funds this summer, but with promotion nothing less than acceptable next season, supporters will want to see ambition being shown in the market too.
However, with funds being even tighter in the Championship, the Irons will have to be more pragmatic and shrewd in how they navigate the window than usual.
As a result, bargains and buying young, high potential players might be the order of the day, and the latter is what they'd be getting with a midfielder from Saudi Arabia.
West Ham add Amadou Kone to transfer shortlist
The Saudi Pro League is renowned for the money involved in it, which could make things complicated for clubs outside of it looking to sign a player from there.
However, that doesn't appear to be putting West Ham off this summer, as they've been credited with an interest to one of the league's brightest young talents.
As per a report from the Daily Mail, the Hammers have now put the signing of Neom SC star Amadou Kone on their transfer to-do list this summer.
Kone left French side Reims to join Neom last summer, and as detailed in the report, has since garnered interest from Premier League duo Sunderland and Nottingham Forest.
Born in Mali, 21-year-old Kone represents the Ivory Coast at youth international level, and looks to have a very bright future ahead of him.
How did Kone fare for Neom in 2025-26?
Given that the Saudi Pro League isn't the greatest division in the world quality-wise, there will likely be some West Ham fans feeling cautious over seeing their side linked to a player from there.
But Kone's numbers in 2025-26 weren't just good, they were in fact the best in the league among his central midfield rivals in numerous key areas.
As per FotMob, no central midfielder in the Saudi Pro League last term won more duels (233), fouls (94) or made more interceptions (54) than Kone did.
He started 32 league games for Neom, scoring twice and providing one assist, seeing over 2,800 minutes of action.
Meanwhile, his 169 defensive contributions and 183 recoveries placed him in the top 2.3 per cent of his positional rivals, whilst his 64 tackles ranked Kone in the leading 3.9 percentile respectively.
Clearly a more defensive-minded central midfielder, Kone did also create 14 chances, register 36 shots on goal, complete 1,457 passes and enjoyed a long ball accuracy of 72.4 per cent with 84 accurate long balls played.
Kone evidently has some serious potential, and his defensive numbers in particular suggest he could anchor West Ham's midfield for many years to come.