West Ham plan ‘€50m madness’ offer amid ‘imminent’ departure of €36m man to Serie A
West Ham are planning to make an offer for Inter Milan midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu as they prepare for Lucas Paqueta bids, according to reports.
The Hammers are yet to sign any new players this summer – but there have been outgoings with Declan Rice sold to Arsenal for £105m, while Arthur Masuaku and Manuel Lanzini have also left the club.
West Ham had a disappointing season in the Premier League last term, finishing 14th on 40 points, but David Moyes led them to glory in the Europa Conference League.
Moyes will be hoping to build on that success in 2023/24 and West Ham aim to give him the tools he needs after losing Rice.
One player they are being linked with is Inter Milan midfielder Calhanoglu with Italian website Calciomercato claiming that West Ham are planning a ‘€50m madness’ for the Turkey international.
The 29-year-old swapped AC Milan for arch-rivals Inter in 2021 with Calhanoglu helping Simone Inzaghi’s side to Coppa Italia glory last season, while they also reached the Champions League final, where they lost to Manchester City.
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Calciomercato adds that the Turkish midfielder is now being ‘seriously targeted’ by West Ham but ‘price to everything’ to Inter and they would and they would only allow him to leave for an ‘indispensable offer’ of around €50m.
However, it is likely that the Hammers would only go for Calhanoglu if Paqueta was to leave this summer after the Brazilian’s brilliant first season in the Premier League.
The same website are also reporting that Roma are keen on signing Gianluca Scamacca from West Ham after Tammy Abraham suffered a serious injury.
It is claimed that Roma’s issue is ‘about to be resolved’ with the signing of Scamacca and that the Italian’s exit from West Ham now ‘increasingly probable and imminent’.
After West Ham spent around €36m on Scamacca last summer, it is understood that Roma have proposed an expensive loan deal that would see the Serie A side commit €4-5m up front with the potential for a €22m clause to be triggered depending on his performances and possible Champions League qualification.
Juventus midfielder Denis Zakaria is another player on Moyes’ radar this summer while transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that their “dream target” is Fulham’s Joao Palhinha.
“Monaco want Zakaria, they have submitted their first bid for the player. It’s now up to West Ham if they want to bid again after initial proposal was rejected by Juventus 15 days ago,” Romano said earlier this week.
“Zakaria is still assessing his options, and Monaco could be an interesting option for him as their new manager Adi Hutter knows him well.
“James Ward-Prowse is on their list, and Scott McTominay too. Edson Alvarez is also appreciated but is not considered a priority now, as far as I understand.
“West Ham’s dream target in midfield is Fulham’s Joao Palhinha, but that looks like being a very expensive deal.”