West Ham are reportedly lining up a transfer for Brazilian striker Yuri Alberto, who is enjoying a solid season with Corinthians. South American media speculate that the number nine could be heading to East London during the summer transfer window, though no fee has yet been mentioned.
Corinthians received a loan offer for Alberto from Southampton in July, but the club was reluctant to do business on those terms. Since then, the striker has scored 11 goals in 26 matches in this season’s Campeonato Brasileiro Série A.
Alberto is a classic target man and, in many ways, embodies the type of striker West Hamhoped they were signing when Niclas Füllkrug joined from Dortmund for £27 million. While he isn’t blessed with blistering pace, the forward is genuinely two-footed, has a sharp eye for goal, and links play effectively.
At 23 years old, Alberto is highly regarded by ninth-placed Corinthians, who endured a slow start to the league but have recently been in excellent form.
However, the São Paulo-based club is reluctant to part with one of their top players without a fight. “We haven’t received any offers at the moment, and our intention is not to sell him. We want to maintain this group, and if we can structure it further, that would be even better,” said club president Augusto Melo.
Another nail in Julen Lopetegui’s coffin – West Ham summer signing tipped to join former club in January
West Ham United head coach Julen Lopetegui must have a lot on his mind right now.
Julen Lopetegui could well face the sack, if West Ham lose our next two games against Newcastle and Arsenal.
All is not well at the London Stadium right now, with rumours of disagreements between Lopetegui and Tim Steidten.
The Hammers have taken just 12 points from our opening 11 Premier League games, and consecutive defeats after the international break would put us bang in the middle of a relegation fight.
That’s obvious not acceptable after the huge spending spree from Lopetegui in the summer.
The Spaniard is far from popular in East London right now, and the Hammers owners seem to be ready to pull the trigger.
In my opinion, it’s only a matter of time before he’s gone.
Now a report has emerged that could well be the straw that broke the camel’s back regarding Lopetegui’s time at West Ham.
Another nail in Looetegui’s coffin: West Ham summer signing tipped to join former club in January
Another nail in Julen Lopetegui’s coffin after Guido Rodriguez claim
Guido Rodriguez joined the Hammers on a free transfer in the summer, after his contract with Real Betis expired.
The Argentinian midfielder has been well off the pace in the Premier League this season, aside from his impressive first-half performance against Tottenham back in October.
Now, despite the fact that Tim Steidten took the lead on most of the Hammers’ transfer dealings in the summer, Rodriguez was actually a Lopetegui signing.
So with that in mind, the Hammers head coach will be incredibly disappointed with the latest claim coming out of Spain.
According to a report from Spanish publication AS, Rodriguez is being tipped to rejoin his former club Betis in January.
However, his wages could prevent the La Liga side from bringing him back home.
I think if we get offered a decent fee for the Argentina international this winter, selling him will be an absolute no-brainer.
It’s painfully clear to see that he doesn’t have the attributes needed to succeed in the Premier League.
Hopefully West Ham are able to move on Guido Rodriguez in January, and we manage to sign a powerful and athletic box-to-box ball-carrier to replace him.
