West Ham United are reportedly on the verge of completing the capture of 28-year-old French international Alphonse Areola from PSG.
According to reputed Turkish journalist Ekrem Konur, West Ham United appear to be on the cusp of bolstering their goalkeeping department in the summer transfer window. The London giants are set to sign 28-year-old French international Alphonse Areola from Paris Saint-Germain.
Alphonse Areola has been a bit of a journeyman around a three-year spell when he became the first-choice goalkeeper for Paris Saint-Germain. More often than not, though, the shot-stopper has struggled to nail down a spot in the first-team setup at Parc des Princes, with his fate sealed after the arrival of Keylor Navas from Real Madrid in the summer of 2019.
That year, Areola made his way in the opposite direction, playing second-fiddle to Thibaut Courtois in 2019/20. Last summer, he arrived in the Premier League by joining South London club Fulham, impressing in a difficult campaign for the Cottagers that ended with relegation to the second tier of English football, keeping ten clean sheets in 37 appearances.
With Gianluigi Donnarumma joining PSG this summer, Areola never seemed to have a chance to reignite his career with the French giants. And so, the only options for the 28-year-old have been a permanent exit from PSG or a loan move, with the latter option now going through in the form of a move to another London club in West Ham United.
??West Ham are about to complete the transfer of Alphonse Areola. Areola will be on loan from PSG for 1 year.
??West Ham, Alphonse #Areola transferini tamamlamak üzere. Areola,PSG’den 1 yıllığına kiralanacak.#WestHam #PSG pic.twitter.com/CF0mcQH6iP
— Ekrem KONUR (@Ekremkonur) July 9, 2021
West Ham United appear to be in the market for a goalkeeper this summer, despite the heroics of Lukasz Fabianski since his arrival from Swansea City. That is because the veteran Polish goalkeeper is now 36 years old and evidently in the twilight of his impeccable career, meaning laying down a succession plan is prudent.
Having said that, a loan move for Areola will only serve a purpose if the Hammers sign him on a permanent deal next summer. Alternatively, West Ham have also been linked with Barcelona shot-stopper Neto, who is intent on departing Camp Nou this summer.
As far as the loan deal for Areola is concerned, it is a low-risk move from the East Londoners, and it will be interesting to see if the transfer gives them an option to sign the 28-year-old permanently next summer. For now, the French international appears set to join West Ham ahead of the 2021/22 season.
