West Ham United to satisfy Julen Lopetegui request to sign Carlos Soler from PSG
West Ham are set to sign Carlos Soler ahead of the transfer deadline to satisfy a request from Julen Lopetegui, according to The Times.
The paper reported via their website on 26 August that the Spanish midfielder “will join” the eight signings Tim Steidten has already made, as long as the club can make space in the squad with exits first.
Money has to be raised to offset approximately £90million spent during the window, with eight current players named as potential exits.
Centre-backs Kurt Zouma, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Nayef Aguerd are all available, as is right-back Vladimir Coufal, midfielders James Ward-Prowse and Maxwel Cornet, and strikers Michail Antonio and Danny Ings.
Zouma is on the brink of joining Al Arobah in the Saudi Pro League after arriving for a medical [Fabrizio Romano, 26 August], but Aguerd has rejected a loan-to-buy exit to the Bundesliga [Guardian, 16 August].
West Ham to offload Kurt Zouma as space for Carlos Soler grows
Steidten and Lopetegui have been nothing if not ambitious this summer with a transfer window to lift hopes among the fanbase.
David Moyes might ask why he didn’t get the same level of backing, while his detractors might equally argue that it may have been wasted on the Scot if he had.
Adding Soler to this squad could unlock the attacking possibilities that an exciting group of options hold and it looks as if the deal itself is ready to go.
It may be another loan-to-buy move [Foot Mercato, 19 August] just as Jean-Clair Todibo’s proved to be as Steidten finds ways to add further reinforcements at the start of the Lopetegui reign.
But outgoings have proven far trickier to get over the line than incomings this summer, which is saying something.
Getting Zouma’s contract off the wage bill is a useful start but a deal for Aguerd is likely to be needed as well, although the fact that he has for so long been linked to the Saudi Pro League [HITC, 25 March], and the transfer window in the Middle Eastern country closes after the English version could complicate matters.
Shifting Danny Ings’ reported £130,000-a-week deal seems vital [talkSPORT, 13 August] as well for the lack of return on investment he has provided, while further exits may depend on offers coming forward.
In other West Ham news, the Europa League winners have come forward to sign another Irons midfielder.
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