AS Roma striker and West Ham links | Behind the headlines

Despite claims from sources at the club and ‘in-the-know’s’ that the Hammers are solely looking to bolster the midfield before the end of the window, striker-media-links continue today with further Italian and UK sites linking West Ham with one particular centre forward. Whether the Hammers are preparing ‘just in case’ for an influx of cash from an Edson Alvarez sale, or whether the reports are agent-created just to boost their own client profiles – difficult to say. Could be both.

West Ham fans clearly invoked a large dollop of wishful thinking and hoped – as I did- that the Idrissa Gueye rumours from last weekend were real and that the Hammers were in with a real shout of buying the young prodigy.

Certainly there’d be more appetite for the teenager than for Ukrainian  Artem Dovbyk, 28 year old AS Roma Striker, usurped by on-loan Evan Ferguson and now linked by several Italian sources with “West Ham, Leeds and Sunderland interest‘ just this morning.

An unlikely link, on the face of it. Dovbyk, much like the perennially-linked Dominic Calvert-Lewin, has a pretty poor recent injury record.

Secondly, AS Roma are claiming to want top dollar for the 28 year old Ukrainian: As the sunderlandecho.com put it yesterday:”West Ham, Sunderland and Leeds have shown interest in AS Roma’s striker Artem Dovbyk, ..Roma are said to value the Ukrainian international at around £34 million”.

Another reason, if one were needed, to go get Idrissa Gueye were there any spare cash swilling around. Some hope .

Described as the” £13 million diamond” Gueye would be under half the price of the ‘linked’ Dovbyk and a realistic option should the Hammers suddenly succeed in shipping players out before the end of the window.

And, speaking of agent talk, another ‘Dominic Calvert Lewin to West Ham’ report popped up on my feed yesterday. At least three times now the club’s spokesman has rubbished any interest in the veteran, injury-hampered striker. We’ve got two of those already.

Frankly, unless, and until, West Ham get a sale organised for at least Alvarez (incidentally, rumour has it that James Ward Prowse is 100% staying as Potter loves him) then there’s zero chance of Dovbyk, Gueye or any other striker landing at West Ham this time around. Another half-season reliant on the fitness of a couple of thirty-something strikers beckons.

Dejà vu at West Ham.