West Ham United are reportedly on the verge of signing former Manchester United striker Javier Hernandez.
The Hammers have activated the Mexico star’s £13 million buyout clause at Bayer Leverkusen and he is set to complete a move to East London this week, as reported by Sky Sports.
If Slaven Bilic can get the deal over the line it would end his 18 month search for a top level striker.
The news has excited the club’s supporters who feel Hernandez is exactly the kind of striker they have been missing for years.
Javier Hernandez
And they’re not the only ones with a high opinion of Mexico’s all-time leading scorer.
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho lavished praise on Hernandez back in April when assessing his side’s profligacy, and lamented the fact he had been sold by predecessor Louis van Gaal.
“We have good players, they are creative players, they can create, but they are not the kind of guy that is naturally a killer,” Mourinho told ESPN at the time.
“I give a simple example, in the way we play at Old Trafford, in the way we dominate opponents, in the way we play in the box, I think Chicharito (Hernandez) would have scored 20 goals easy.
“Even coming from the bench for the last 10 or 20 minutes, he would have 20 goals. He is the guy that naturally the ball comes here, rebound here, rebounds there, boom, goal.
“The goalkeeper saves, he goes there, boom, goal. The cross is coming, he anticipates the first-post header, goal.”
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho
So if Hammers fans were not excited enough, praise from one of the best managers in world football should just about tip the scales.
Bilic has already missed out on a number of striker targets this summer, though, so fans will not want to celebrate his arrival until it is officially signed sealed and delivered.
But the statistics back up Mourinho’s claims as the striker has a fearsome ratio of a goal every 1.4 league starts in his career and a goal every other game for his national side.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
