West Ham set sights on summer signing already ‘as Anderlecht gem identified’
West Ham are already lining up their first signings for the summer transfer window with an attacker from Anderlecht identified as a target.
Graham Potter was limited in the business he could do during the summer transfer window due to a lack of available funds, which has meant progress in East London was initially slow.
The new boss finally got two consecutive wins under his belt after beating Arsenal and Leicester City, and he will be keen to grow upon this before putting his stamp on the side ahead of the next campaign.
Potter eyeing up Mario Stroeykens for West Ham
One area where West Ham are keen to strengthen is at the top end of the field, having been hit with terrible luck this term.
Long-term injuries to Michail Antonio and Niclas Fullkrug left the boss light when it came to options, especially as Jarrod Bowen was also hit by injury earlier in the campaign.
Evan Ferguson made the loan move to The London Stadium during the winter transfer window but has failed to really get going so far, missing a great opportunity from close range to net his first goal against Leicester.
His loan deal has no obligation to buy at the end of the campaign, however, which does put the Irons in the driving seat when it comes to make a decision over their options.
According to The Athletic, one man who is already on the radar for West Ham is 20-year-old Mario Stroeykens.
The attacking midfielder is currently at Anderlecht and has registered three goals and five assists in 20 league appearances this term.
Potter ready for West Ham transformation
The appointment of Potter at West Ham after Julen Lopetegui’s departure certainly brought a lot of optimism to East London, albeit progress was initially slow before picking up.
It very much looks as though the Irons may now be starting to find their feet, and if they can string a run of furthers wins together, they can start setting their sights on the top half.
The boss will surely be looking forward to the summer transfer window with the hope that he can fiddle around with the team and make it look more how he would like it to.
| West Ham v Fulham | 3-2 |
| West Ham v Crystal Palace | 0-2 |
| Aston Villa v West Ham | 1-1 |
| Chelsea v West Ham | 2-1 |
| West Ham v Brentford | 0-1 |
| Arsenal v West Ham | 0-1 |
| West Ham v Leicester City | 2-0 |
There are plenty of player decisions to be made at the end of the season with the likes of Lukasz Fabianski, Vladimir Coufal, Aaron Cresswell, Michail Antonio and Danny Ings all out of contract after the conclusion of the campaign.
Therefore, supporters in East London should be feeling fairly reassured by the fact that the boss is already looking at summer options, specifically in a position that certainly needs strengthening as a priority.
At just 20 years old, Potter could work wonders with Stroeykens in terms of developing his progression further.
Given he is already contributing to his side on a fairly regular basis, it does look as though it could be a promising addition.
Nevertheless, Potter will need to make sure he has players available to him who are able to step up to the required levels as soon as called upon.