West Ham United’s Cheikhou Kouyate is wanted by Crystal Palace and Porto.
According to The Mirror, West Ham United are hoping Cheikhou Kouyate joins Porto instead of Crystal Palace, because his future impacts their bid for Moussa Marega.
The Hammers have brought in seven summer signings, and whilst some have moved on, it may now be time for Manuel Pellegrini to shift out some more players before next month’s deadline.
One player touted for the exit is Senegal international Cheikhou Kouyate, despite the fact that West Ham are short of options in midfield even after bringing in Jack Wilshere.
Now, The Mirror report that whilst Crystal Palace are keen, West Ham are hoping to send the midfielder to Portuguese champions Porto instead of to their London rivals.
It’s claimed that Kouyate is being used in West Ham’s bid for Porto striker Moussa Marega, and they are pushing for the midfielder to head to the Estadio do Dragao rather than Selhurst Park.
Palace have identified Maxime Gonalons as a potential fallback option, with West Ham’s usage of Kouyate as a makeweight for prolific hitman Marega understandably holding up a move.
Kouyate, 28, was signed by Sam Allardyce back in 2014, and has hit 15 goals in 147 games for the Hammers, featuring regularly in heart of midfield under Allardyce, Slaven Bilic and David Moyes.
However, Pellegrini now seemingly feels that Kouyate could be moved on if it lands Marega, and Palace may have to come up with something special to tempt West Ham into selling to them instead.
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