West Ham are set to rival Wolves in the race for Nice striker Evann Guessand, according to the Daily Mail.
The report claims the Hammers will need to sell before making any signings—conveniently ignoring recent revelations that the West Ham board are now prepared to back Graham Potter financially this summer.
Quite frankly, it’s just nice not to be locked in another transfer tussle with Everton—so perhaps this time the Hammers stand a fighting chance against Wolves.
Wolverhampton Wanderers are reportedly preparing a formal bid for the 23-year-old Ivory Coast international, who scored 13 goals last season as Nice finished fourth in Ligue 1 behind PSG, Marseille, and Monaco.
Guessand, who has three years left on his current deal, is expected to command a fee of around £20–25 million. He was on West Ham’s radar in January, but Nice refused to sanction a sale while chasing Champions League qualification.
The Irons have an excellent relationship with the French club following the deal for Jean Clair Todibo. Unfortunately that won’t help with the fee for Guessand which has almost doubled in 6 months.
Wolves certainly appear to hold the financial edge after agreeing a £60 million deal to sell Matheus Cunha to Manchester United. However, West Ham’s new-found willingness to spend could keep us firmly in the hunt.
That said, for now, reports of the board injecting £90 million into the transfer kitty remain just that—reports. Until we see the Hammers actually pull the trigger on a deal, we’ll remain cautiously optimistic.
My hope for next season is that Potter can get the team playing with some joy, some happiness.
It was there in Moyes early tenure, but it disappeared and the team has seemed to wear playing like a chore, rather than a thing they love.
If players like Kudus and Paquetta remain at the club for another season, it would be a pleasure to see them play with a smile on their faces. Not shouldering a burden.
A lot of that will come down to the manager and his team (and the FA coming to their senses regarding Paquetta).
We really do need rebuilding, it’d be nice to do it with guys who are up for the challenge, enjoying the challenge, and who are happy to be here (I won’t say “want to be here”, but I’ll settle for happy).