West Ham United reportedly have fellow Premier League outfit Leicester City for competition in pursuit of Matheus Pereira, valued at around €25 million.
According to reputed Turkish journalist Ekrem Konur, West Ham United are no longer alone in the race to sign Matheus Pereira from West Bromwich Albion in the summer transfer window. The Hammers will have to battle Leicester City for the 25-year-old Brazilian attacker, who is valued at around €25 million by West Bromwich Albion.
Matheus Pereira has been nothing short of impressive ever since he joined West Bromwich Albion from Sporting Lisbon. Initially signed on loan by the Baggies, the Brazilian international played a pivotal role as they sealed promotion to the Premier League.
Pereira did not slow down one bit in the top-flight and was one of the rare bright spots in a dire campaign for West Brom. To date, the 25-year-old has managed a return of 20 goals and 26 assists in 77 appearances. However, with West Brom back in the Championship, Pereira is keen on an exit this summer, with West Ham United and Leicester City after him.
West Ham United are keen on signing jesse Lingard following the success of his loan spell in the second half of last season. However, recent sources have indicated that Manchester Untied are keen on keeping hold of the English attacker, forcing the Hammers to look for alternatives.
To that end, Pereira has emerged as a viable target for West Ham, who have already submitted an offer worth €15 million to West Brom. However, Leicester are following close behind, with the Foxes ready to make their offer for the Brazilian attacker soon.
The interest from Leicester makes a world of sense as Dennis Praet is facing an uncertain future at the King Power Stadium while James Maddison has been heavily linked with Arsenal in recent times. As a result, Leicester could well be in need of a long-term replacement, which makes Pereira a viable target.
Meanwhile, West Ham’s €15 million bid might not be enough to land the 25-year-old, with West Brom keen on recouping €25 million in exchange of his services. However, West Ham and Leicester could be facing an uphill battle to land the Brazilian forward, who already has a pre-agreement with Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, as per Pedro Almeida.
What now remains to be seen is if West Ham and Leicester can do anything to topple Al Hilal in the race to sign Matheus Pereira. At the same time, it will also be interesting to see any of suitors are prepared to offer €25 million to tempt the Baggies to sell him to them.
