West Ham make major decision on £40m top January target Jorgen Strand Larsen
West Ham have gone off the idea of signing top target Jorgen Strand Larsen in the January transfer window.
It has already been agreed for Niclas Fullkrug to leave on loan to AC Milan and Nuno Espirito Santo needs reinforcements in the winter window if he is to rescue an increasingly dire situation at the London Stadium.
Despite a point picked up as West Ham drew 2-2 with Brighton on Tuesday night the Hammers remain inside the relegation zone and four points adrift from safety.
Strand Larsen has emerged as West Ham’s primary target to strengthen the attack but the club aren’t willing to meet the reported £40million asking price at Molineux.
West Ham turned off Strand Larsen move by Wolves
Although it was expected that any deal for Strand Larsen would have to be negotiated down it is now being reported by the BBC that West Ham have cooled on the move entirely due to the valuation.
The Hammers are said to remain committed to strengthening Nuno’s attack but are now looking at alternatives to the 25-year-old Norwegian.
However, the door is not thought to be entirely closed on the club reigniting their interest later in the January window.
It has separately emerged that one of the alternative targets for West Ham is Eddie Nketiah at Crystal Palace.
Strand Larsen was subject to sustained interest from Newcastle in the summer, with the Magpies having bids of £50m and £55m rejected before the striker was given a new contract to strengthen Wolves’ future negotiating position.
Max Kilman deal hangs over Wolves pursuit
The irony surely won’t be lost on long-suffering West Ham supporters that the last time Wolves wanted £40m for a player the club happily overspent on Max Kilman for Julen Lopetegui.
At the time it might have seemed a stretch worth making to give David Moyes’ successor the man he wanted from his previous stint in the Premier League, but the defender’s move has proven to be emblematic of the mismanagement of the club in recent years.
Lopetegui didn’t last the season while the form on the pitch has shown the club wasted too much money on multiple deals, including Kilman’s.
West Ham now either can’t or won’t do the same when they are in greater need, and for a player who arguably has a stronger argument to cost that much.
Strand Larsen has only scored three times this term, and only once in the league, but he has been playing in what looks to be an historically bad Wolves side that only has three points so far.
Since they specifically gave him a new contract, just a year after signing him, in the face of bids from Newcastle it should be no surprise they don’t want to let him go cheaply, not least since they will probably have to do that in the summer and are bound to go down without him anyway.
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