West Ham United are eyeing Vasco da Gama wonderkid Rayan Vitor and Spezia’s Serie A full-back Emil Holm as the Premier League outfit prepare to spend in the aftermath of Declan Rice’s sale.
With Declan Rice’s long-awaited, £105 million switch to Arsenal progressing at the speed of a snail breaking in a new pair of trainers, West Ham have found themselves in limbo; their rivals spending and negotiating while David Moyes is forced to wait.
The Hammers have not signed a single new player this summer.
But with Rice expected to finally be unveiled as an Arsenal player on Friday – per Sky Sports – West Ham’s window could be like the footballing equivalent of waiting for a London bus. You spend six weeks of the window hoping for one new signing, and then loads arrive at once.
West Ham have big plans once Declan Rice leaves
West Ham have reportedly offered £11 million for Juventus misfit Denis Zakaria; a box-to-box midfielder who could help Moyes move on from his talismanic skipper. Real Betis are awaiting an offer from the Hammers for defender Luiz Felipe, meanwhile. The Conference League winners are also preparing to step up their interest in Manchester United’s Scott McTominay (The Independent).
Italian publication Tuttomercatoweb believe that Spezia’s Emil Holm is another to keep an eye on. An excellent one-v-one defender; the tough-tackling Swede could be an upgrade in the right-back spot on the middling Vladimir Coufal and the disappointing Ben Johnson.
TMW insist that Spezia will demand £13 million for 23-year-old Holm. The youngster has also caught the eye of Inter Milan, Juventus, Napoli, Brighton and Burnley.
A Brazilian wonderkid on the radar
Rayan Vitor, meanwhile, may be the most intriguing of West Ham’s summer targets. The Vasco da Gama wonderkid is only 16 years of age, but is already valued at a staggering £22 million. Fellow teenagaers Vinicius Jr, Endrick de Souza and Vitor Roque (Barcelona’s new £25 million striker) have all left Brazil for eye-watering sums in the recent past, emboldening Vasco da Gama to demand an eight-figure for a baby-faced forward who was less than a month old when West Ham signed Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano in August 2006.
Reported interest from Barcelona and Real Madrid – not to mention Newcastle United – is testament to just how highly Rayan Vitor is rated. Though it remains to be seen if West Ham would be willing to invest over £20 million. Vitor, after all, would not even arrive at the London Stadium until he turns 18.
The success of Vinicius at Real is, at least, proof that such risks can reap considerable rewards.
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