West Ham United now in £26m transfer talks to sign striker Pedro
West Ham are in talks over a £26million deal to sign Flamengo striker Pedro before the transfer deadline, according to Alan Nixon.
The Sun journalist reported via his Patreon account that David Moyes wants competition for Michail Antonio in order to challenge domestically and in Europe, and is now trying to sign the 26-year-old who has a “perfect” profile for this Hammers side.
Mohammed Kudus has signed his deal and will be arriving imminently but West Ham have gone after strikers already, including long-term target Youssef En-Nesyri from Sevilla.
Gianluca Scamacca has already left this summer, while Michail Antonio has been linked to an exit himself amid interest from Saudi Arabia.
West Ham still have money to spend after selling the Italian to Atalanta and Declan Rice to Arsenal for a club-record fee.
Late show
The end of the transfer window has already made up for a lot of the frustration over the summer, with the capture of Kudus amid wide rival interest particularly exciting.
But a new striker before the deadline would constitute a successful summer overall, especially if a new left-back addition is found as well.
Pedro’s scoring record with Flamengo is excellent, with 94 goals in 197 appearances since he returned from a brief spell with Fiorentina three years ago.
Antonio has started the new season on fire despite apparently looking to move on, with goals in each of the past two 3-1 victories over Chelsea and Brighton respectively.
But if he were to be struck down by injury, or an offer he can’t refuse were to come in before the window shuts, Moyes would be left short in attack, even allowing for the fact that Kudus can operate up front.
The Ghanian star doesn’t have the physical profile that Antonio has used to such effect in the manager’s counter-attacking set up, and Danny Ings’ record with the club hasn’t been great.
Divin Mubama may be in line for a few more opportunities this season but is still very raw, so if Pedro’s profile is seen as “perfect” for the London Stadium it could be a strong late deal to get over the line.
