West Ham United should seriously consider a January move for Brentford’s Neal Maupay.
It was the final hours of the January transfer window in 2017 when Sky Sports reported that West Ham had decided against making a £15 million move for Brentford’s Scott Hogan.
At the time, Slaven Bilic suggested that the Hammers already had the kind of depth that made Hogan seem an unnecessary target. Hindsight suggests that the Irons made the right call as the Republic of Ireland international continues to struggle for Aston Villa.
But heading into the next January window, West Ham arguably now have a reason to target Brentford’s current goalscoring machine, Neal Maupay.
Maupay has started the new Championship campaign in sensational form, scoring 11 goals in 13 appearances for the Bees. His form has tempted Huddersfield to consider a £10 million move in the January window – according to The Sun – and West Ham should arguably do the same.
Manuel Pellegrini’s men may have not won for a little while, but they have certainly turned a corner and it would be a huge shock if they found themselves anywhere near the bottom three when the business end of the campaign arrives.
Nevertheless, they arguably do not have enough quality in the striker pecking order behind Marko Arnautovic. And that should tempt Pellegrini to prioritise signing a new goalscorer in the winter.
Maupay is showing some brilliant form and is young enough to improve further in the coming years. It appears that he is ready to realise the almost frightening potential that he was showing at Nice at the start of his career.
West Ham made the right call not signing Hogan nearly two years ago, but the Hammers should seriously consider parting with an eight-figure sum for a Brentford striker this time around as Maupay could make a real impact at the London Stadium given their current lack of genuine depth.
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