West Ham re-enter race for £14m-rated midfielder Alex Kral
West Ham are set to re-enter the race for Spartak Moscow midfielder Alex Kral, according to Sunday Mirror journalist Simon Mullock.
Writing in the latest print edition of the Sunday Mirror [May 23], Mullock reported that the Irons will go back in for the Czech Republic international who they tried to sign in January, only for the move to stall.
It is claimed that it will cost £14million to prise Kral from the clutches of Russian side Spartak, with the wantaway 23-year-old eager to “take the next step”.
The Mirror report carries further quotes from Kral who claims he is “in touch with Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal, they’re good friends.”
The trio all played together at Czech side Slavia Prague and play for the national team, who Kral has made 16 appearances for and scored two goals, forming a formidable partnership with Soucek.
Kral’s performances for Spartak have caught the eye this season and a tweet from the official account sums up his wealth of abilities.
The Spartak club tweeted last month that “he can do it all” after relaying some of his defensive and attacking statistics.
Midfielders urgently required
Soucek and Declan Rice are the undoubted midfield pairing at the base of the Irons midfield but if we are to be playing European football next season, we need more options.
Behind the duo there is only Mark Noble as a recognised central midfield option, and he is set to depart at the end of the 2021/21 campaign.
Noble still does a solid job but we need more energy and someone to bring a combative approach when Rice is out, and Kral can do just that.
As the aforementioned Spartak tweet shows he is not afraid to get stuck into the action, averaging 1.4 tackles per game while also showing some creativity from a deeper position, with four assists.
The presence of Soucek and Coufal in the squad should help with his integration into English football so this looks like a move that has legs.
In other West Ham news, ‘In my wildest dreams…’ – Pundit stunned by what he’s seen these four Irons players do.
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