Burnley and West Ham United reportedly missed out on Ghanaian striker Abdul Majeed Waris.
According to Ouest-France, Burnley and West Ham United both missed out on Lorient’s Abdul Majeed Waris on deadline day, as neither club could agree a fee, and there were also concerns over attaining a work permit.
Waris, 25, has failed to really settle down in his career so far, having turned out for the likes of BK Hacken, Spartak Moscow, Valenciennes, Trabzonspor and, most recently, Lorient.
The Ghanaian forward’s career history has been inconsistent, to say the least; after nine goals in 16 games for Valenciennes, he mustered just four goals in 29 appearances for Trabzonspor, before heading back to France with Lorient in 2015.
Waris, known for his blistering pace, has excelled in two seasons with Lorient, notching 20 goals and eight assists in the last two campaigns, but he couldn’t stop Lorient from suffering relegation at the end of last season.
Lorient’s relegation has seen Waris receive major interest, but Ouest-France report that two Premier League clubs – Burnley and West Ham – missed out on signing him on deadline day for two key reasons.
It’s claimed that the structure of Burnley’s £10million bid wasn’t acceptable for Lorient, whilst West Ham found that a work permit would’ve been difficult to attain having held a meeting to sign Waris on Wednesday.
Waris would’ve brought real pace to the West Ham attack, as well as versatility to play out wide or up front, but Diafra Sakho staying at the London Stadium may have forced the Hammers to back away from pursuing Waris.
He would have been ideal for Burnley in terms of bringing the pace that they don’t have now Andre Gray has left for Burnley, with the likes of Chris Wood, Sam Vokes and Ashley Barnes offer similar, predominantly physical attributes – and it remains to be seen whether Burnley return for Waris in January.
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