West Ham United reportedly wanted to pay big for La Liga’s Paraguayan forward Toni Sanabria in the summer window.
The fact that Marko Arnautovic is still starting up front reflects West Ham United’s failure to bring a natural centre forward to the London Stadium during the summer transfer window. But that was not for a lack of trying.
The Hammers were linked with a whole host of strikers between May and August, including Toni Sanabria.
According to Marca, West Ham were considering a £20 million bid for Real Betis’s Paraguayan poacher, who has established himself as one of the most promising young strikers in Spanish football over the last couple of seasons.
But Sanabria’s form in the opening weeks of this campaign does not exactly suggest that he would have been West Ham’s missing link.
The 22-year-old has made seven La Liga appearances this season – although just two of those have come from the start – and he has failed to score a single goal in the Spanish top flight. Sanabria has lost his place in the Betis XI to Loren Moron, who was also linked with a move to the Hammers during the summer.
Sanabria has also struggled with injuries since moving to Betis in 2016, starting just 24 games in the last two seasons.
Now, Calciomercato is reporting that West Ham are ready to pay big to sign the proven Premier League striker Edin Dzeko from Roma in January and he could be a better way to invest £20 million.
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