Just how high can West Ham United fly?
If you told the London Stadium faithful at the start of the window that this was how their squad would be shaping up going into the final month of the transfer window, even the most glass-half-full of Hammers supporters may have been tempted to do his best John W Henry impression and enquire about the contents of your cigarette.
Despite links with some of Europe’s biggest clubs, Edson Alvarez, Jarrod Bowen, Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta are all still West Ham United players.
In Luis Guilherme – the ‘extraordinary’ former Palmeiras winger – one of the most promising talents in Brazil now calls West Ham home. A proven Premier League operator has also arrived, ex-Wolves captain Max Kilman reuniting with Julen Lopetegui.
And, before the week comes to an end, the 2023 Europa Conference League winners could have three more signings through the door. Three stand-out, senior acquisitions all capable of slotting straight into Lopetegui’s first XI.
West Ham United close in on Dortmund’s Niclas Fullkrug
HITC understands that West Ham are closing in on Leeds talisman Crysencio Summerville.
The Championship Player of the Year – scorer of 21 goals last season – could be the right-winger The Hammers have been crying out for.
World Cup-winner Guido Rodriguez, the experienced free-agent, is also in discussions. HITC reported on Friday that West Ham had hi-jacked Jose Mourinho’s Fenerbahce deal for the one-time Barcelona target.
Niclas Fullkrug, meanwhile, may be the most transformative of the lot.
Presuming he can break from tradition and thrive where so many before him have failed in claret-and-blue, Fullkrug feels like the missing piece of this West Ham jigsaw.
A physically-imposing, old-school number nine who – ‘one of the best in Europe‘ when it comes to his aerial presence – should dine out greedily on the service provided by Kudus, Bowen, James Ward-Prowse and co.
HITC understands that West Ham have agreed to bring in Fullkrug on a three-year contract. The Borussia Dortmund talisman will join for around £25 million.
And the Bundesliga giants have now confirmed, via their official X account, that the late-blooming Germany international has ‘left the training camp on Saturday morning’.
Dortmund, they add, have ‘released the striker for talks with another club’. That club, of course, being West Ham United.
Bundesliga giants seem to confirm striker’s departure
At 31, Fullkrug and Guido Rodriguez are unlikely to be particularly long-term additions to the West Ham roster.
But both players could slot straight into the starting XI while adding real physical power and top-level quality to the claret-and-blue squad. For what they lack in longevity, they should make up for in the immediacy of their impact.
Fullkrug, with his warrior’s spirit, his gap-toothed image and his explosive finishing, could quickly become a fans’ favourite at the London Stadium.
Adored wherever he goes, Fullkrug scored 15 times for Dortmund last term and boasts a formidable record of 13 goals in 21 starts for the German national team.
The Werder Bremen academy graduate also won the Bundesliga’s Golden Boot when playing for the Weser Stadion outfit in 2022/23.
“He is calmer and more relaxed (these days),” Gerhard Zuber, the long-time West Ham target’s former director at Nurnburg, tells Sky Sports. “When he is fit, he is one of the best around. Momentum is the biggest advantage for him now.
“He is feeling good and you can see that with his shooting. That is very helpful. If you score goals then it gives you confidence and, if you have confidence, then you score goals. He has amazing physicality and he is doing everything he can to be in shape now.”
“Every team needs a player like him,” adds the former Austria scout. “He does extra training sessions, always shooting.”
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