West Ham 'submit concrete offer' for £21.1m forward and 'contact' representatives

West Ham are being linked with a move for a talented young forward as Graham Potter looks to put his own stamp on his new side. It has been a frustrating season for the Hammers, down in 14th place and 11 points off the European spots after a disappointing home defeat to London rivals Crystal Palace.

Naturally, it will take Potter some time to get his ideas across to his new players, and it’s also going to take time for the Hammers to shake off the rust of their early season slump under Julen Lopetegui.

Injuries haven’t helped, either, especially defensively, and Potter has admitted that the club may look to add a new defender before the end of the January transfer window. He said after the Palace defeat: “We’ve got a few challenges to fix, but that’s normally why you end up at a football club in January: because there’s things to do,” he explained. We’ve got some options there internally. And then, of course, we’re always looking for options to help the team.

“JC [Todibo] is going to be a while before he comes back, so there’s no immediate solution there. It’s a calf strain and lower-limb issue. He’s going to be a bit of time yet. We have to look for what we have.”

While West Ham will be prioritising defensive reinforcements, they will also be keeping their eyes out for good opportunities elsewhere, and L’Equipe via SportWitness have reported that the London club has expressed an interest in a talented young striker.

It’s claimed Marseille frontman Elye Wahi is of interest, with AFC Bournemouth also expressing an interest. It’s claimed the Hammers have actually submitted a concrete loan offer with the obligation to buy through a ‘historic intermediary’, while they have also contacted the player’s representatives in a bid to beat competition elsewhere.

Eintracht Frankfurt are said to be pushing for a deal as they prepare to lose Omar Marmoush to Manchester City. Wahi has made 13 league appearances for Marseille since arriving from Lens last summer, scoring three goals. The 22-year-old scored nine goals in 27 league appearances for Lens.

Marseille paid £21.6million plus £4.2million in add-ons to sign Wahi in the summer, and they would naturally demand to make that money back to seal any sale, likely also wanting some profit on the top. West Ham only seem to be willing to do an initial loan deal, looking to delay the investment until the summer, but that may not suit Marseille, given they would need to find a replacement without receiving any upfront funds.