West Ham want no fewer than four players currently at Fulham, along with their manager Slavisa Jokanovic.
West Ham United are likely to be watching Fulham’s two-legged Championship playoff semi-final with Derby County with keener interest than most.
The Cottagers missed out on automatic promotion to the Premier League on the final day of the season, when a 3-1 loss at Birmingham City not only ended their 23-game unbeaten run but also saw Cardiff City clinch second place by two points.
Now the Hammers will be waiting to see if their London rivals can still return to the top flight of English football for the first time since 2013/14 as much of their summer transfer business could hinge on what division Slavisa Jokanovic’s men are in.
That is because West Ham are targeting no fewer than four players currently at Craven Cottage, with football.london reporting goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli, right-back Ryan Fredericks, midfielder Tom Cairney and striker Aleksandar Mitrovic – who is on loan from Newcastle United – are all on their radar.
Add to that the fact that Jokanovic himself is also being considered as a replacement for David Moyes as manager – with the Scot out of contract at the end of this term – and suddenly there is a lot of crossover between the two clubs.
Of course if Fulham fail to get promoted then the chance of those five aforementioned names making the switch to the London Stadium and a division above probably becomes all the more likely.
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