West Ham had £27m deal agreed for ex-Arsenal striker, this is why move fell through
West Ham United had a very busy winter transfer window, but one deal broke down at the final stage.
The Hammers are firmly in a Premier League relegation battle, so Nuno Espirito Santo needed a number of incomings to strengthen his squad.
West Ham signed Pablo, Taty Castellanos and Adama Traore permanently, while also bringing in Keibar Lamadrid and Axel Disasi on loan.
However, it has now been revealed that the East London outfit were close to sealing a deal for one of their top targets early in the window, but the move was halted at the last moment.
West Ham miss out on Eddie Nketiah
West Ham made an approach for Eddie Nketiah at the start of January, as they looked to add to their attacking ranks.
The former Arsenal man had made just 12 Premier League appearances for Crystal Palace up to that point in the season, with the majority coming from the bench.
According to The Athletic, the Hammers had agreed a deal worth £27million with Palace to sign the striker, and the move was progressing quickly.
However, Nketiah suffered a hamstring injury during training, meaning that the transfer was called off.
The Englishman hasn’t featured for Palace in 2026 as he continues his rehabilitation.
West Ham moved on to other targets after the news about Nketiah’s injury, bringing in both Castellanos and Pablo up front.
Crystal Palace wanted Callum Wilson
In what would’ve been a completely separate deal, Palace were interested in Callum Wilson.
The 33-year-old looked almost certain to leave West Ham at the start of January, but Eagles boss Oliver Glasner was initially unconvinced by the centre-forward.
By the time Glasner had relented, Wilson was back in Nuno’s plans, having scored the winner for the Hammers in a 2-1 victory over Tottenham.
There was no chance the England international was going to be allowed to leave following his goal against Spurs, as he had proved he could be a real asset in the relegation battle.
The former Newcastle United striker has come off the bench for West Ham in both games since then.