As they turn their attention towards attacking reinforcements, West Ham United are now reportedly favourites to complete a 2025 move to sign one particular winger who’s enjoyed an excellent season so far.
West Ham transfer news
Into a new era under Graham Potter following Julen Lopetgui’s failure, West Ham couldn’t have asked for a more frustrating start on the injury front. The former Chelsea manager is instantly been without almost all of his recognised striker thanks to the hamstring injury that Niclas Fullkrug suffered in FA Cup defeat at the hands of Aston Villa.
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The German joins Michail Antonio and Jarrod Bowen on the sidelines to leave the Hammers in a desperate position in the January transfer window.
Potter, however, has chosen to remain calm and insisted that West Ham will not sign just any option to cover for their absentee this month and instead wait for the perfect move to emerge. He told reporters as relayed by Tribal Football: “It is fair to say it is a significant one. It’s still early in terms of full diagnosis but it is still significant and it will be a number of weeks.
“There’s certainly a logical rationale to do something but it’s not always as simple as that. I wouldn’t want to do something for the sake of it in this window which is very complicated.
“There are players coming back so my focus is on how to get the team working as well as possible. Sometimes in these situations you have to be creative, and look at your players’ attributes. We’ve got options up front, in terms of Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Paqueta and Danny Ings, so let’s see.”
If those at the London club are to wait until the summer to welcome an attacking reinforcement, meanwhile, then it seems they could add a third Czech international to their squad. According to reports in Spain, West Ham are now leading the race to sign Vaclav Cerny ahead of Villarreal once his loan spell at Rangers expires in the summer and he returns to Wolfsburg.
"Experienced" Cerny is at the peak of his powers
It may have taken Cerny a moment or two to get going at Rangers, but ever since finding his best form he has not looked back at Ibrox. Scoring 12 goals and assisting a further seven in all competitions, the 27-year-old has been one of the few bright sparks in an otherwise forgettable season for Rangers and Philippe Clement.
The Gers boss has, as a result, been full of praise for his winger, telling reporters as relayed by Rangers News back in August: “(With Vaclav) you saw directly when he came on, his qualities; to be calm on the ball to make the right decisions. He’s an experienced player and with with a lot of quality.”
At 27 years old, the only obstacle in the way of a Premier League move for Cerny is likely his age. A number of clubs may opt for players below the 25 mark, but West Ham would be wise to avoid making such a mistake in this case following an excellent campaign at Rangers.
