West Ham United and Leicester City are reportedly battling it out to sign Barcelona star Paco Alcacer on loan.
It is fair to say that both Manuel Pellegrini and Claude Puel are likely to be pleased with the business that they have done in the window so far. The Hammers, in particular, appear to have done some of the most eye-catching deals in the Premier League.
Nevertheless, it appears that the Irons and Foxes are both keen to get a new striker in before the window closes this month. The Sun on Sunday (05/08; page 61) reports that West Ham and Leicester are interested in Alcacer who is available to leave the Nou Camp on loan during this window.
However, The Sun on Sunday adds that Barca want £3 million for the former Valencia ace, and his £150,000-a-week wages will have to be covered.
The wages will certainly prove to be a stumbling block and it would be little surprise if West Ham and Leicester were both questioning whether paying those kind of fees would make sense.
The loan fee itself is not eye-watering by any means. His record for the Catalan giants of 10 La Liga goals in 37 appearances is fairly impressive when you consider that he has started just 14 times since arriving from their top flight rivals in 2016.
But with Marko Arnautovic and Kelechi Iheanacho providing plenty of goals for their respective sides in pre-season, those wage demands could perhaps leave both clubs hesitating over a potential pursuit.
However, if West Ham or Leicester do decide to meet the terms Barcelona reportedly want, it seems to fair to suggest that they will be able to reflect that signing Alcacer is the icing on the cake following what appears to have been incredibly impressive windows for both clubs.
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