Lucas Paqueta in action for West Ham.
According to ɾєρօɾτs,West Ham Unitedare plotting a move forAjaxstandoutMohammed Kudus, who would replace Man City-linked Lucas Paqueta.
West Ham made a slow start to this summer on the transfer front but they have spent around £65m over the past couple of days to sign Edson Alvarez and James Ward-Prowse fromAjaxand Southampton respectively.
The Premier League outfit sold Declan Rice toArsenalearlier this summer and they could also lose Paqueta, who is being pursued byManchester City.
Pep Guardiola’s side have ɾєρօɾτedly made a £95m bid for the Brazil internationalafter he shone for West Ham during his debut season in 2022/23.
Fabrizio Romano took to Twitter on Monday morning to claim that “Paqueta has reached an agreement on personal terms withCityand wants the move”.
The transfer expert refutes claims that a new bid has been submitted byMan City, but they are “preparing a new offer”.
Regarding Kudus, Romano added: “West Ham now open initial talks to signMohammed Kudus— priority target in case Lucas Paqueta leaves to joinManchester City.
“Positive talks on player side, Kudus open to the move — still waiting to approachAjaxas Ԁєɑł will depєɴԀ on Paqueta”.
Kudus has been heavily linked withArsenaland Chelsea this summer and he could cost around €45m if recent ɾєρօɾτs are to be believed.
The 23-year-old grabbed 18 goals and seven assists forAjaxlast season and he would be an astute signing for West Ham if Paqueta does move on.
Ex-Premier League midfielder Danny Murphy thinks Paqueta should sign forMan Cityas this transfer “makes sense”.
“I think if you look at their three midfield positions at the moment, you’d say at the start of the season if he was picking his best team you’d have Rodri, [Mateo] Kovacic and [Kevin] De Bruyne,” Murphy said on talkSPORT.
“But you need more than three, obviously, Bernardo Silva can play in there if he stays but he generally played out right in the big games last season.
“Paqueta could play in the De Bruyne role, he’s obviously not in the same level as De Bruyne but he’s creative and he can play that. He can also play the Kovacic role where he’s a bit deeper because he plays there for Brazil.
“It makes sense to me. His last three months in a West Ham shirt were really good. I thought the fɑɴȿ were starting to see the real Paqueta then he had some terrific games near the єɴԀ of the season.”
