Sassuolo are demanding at least €45 million to part ways with Gianluca Scamacca, with West Ham United keen on the forward.
West Ham United are considering a move for Gianluca Scamacca, but according to Sport Mediaset, the Hammers think Sassuolo’s asking price of €45 million is too high. Other clubs are interested in the Italian forward, although David Moyes remains desperate to bring the highly-rated striker to the club.
West Ham United are making the right moves in the summer transfer market. But David Moyes’ priority remains the signing of a a new centre-forward. Finding a new quality striker is proving to be quite a difficult task for clubs in this window, as options are few and expensive.
Moyes and West Ham United have managed to sign a new central defender in Nayef Aguerd from Rennes. Meanwhile, they have signed Alphonse Areola permanently from Paris Saint-Germain. The club are now likely to focus their efforts on a new striker, with Gianluca Scamacca their reported top target.
The Hammers have recently seen their name linked to several strikers, including Armando Broja, Mohamed Bayo, and Giovanni Simeone. However, they reportedly want Scamacca to join the club but are baulking at his high asking price set by Sassuolo.
West Ham have been desperate to sign a new striker as Moyes wants to reduce the burden on Michail Antonio. The Hammers were over-reliant on the Jamaican, which saw them lose ground in the top-four race and finish seventh, which was only good enough for a Europa Conference League qualification.
Scamacca, to that end, has emerged as a key target. But Sassuolo want €45 million for the 23-year-old forward, having rejected a €40 million bid from Arsenal earlier in June.
PSG are the other club keen on Scamacca, although, in recent weeks, the Hammers have made sure they are in front of the queue. Scamacca does not have any more viable options left to join within Italy after Inter Milan dropped their interest and re-signed Romelu Lukaku. So the 23-year-old remains open to moving abroad, and England could be a favourable destination.
Moyes and his club consider Sassuolo’s €45 million asking price to be steep, and are continuing to hold discussions with the Italian side. However, the Serie A club want to keep hold of the striker for some more time and are confident that the price tag will stave off the suitors.
And going back to West Ham’s argument on the price, Scamacca is certainly not an established forward, despite netting 16 times in 38 league appearances for Sassuolo last season. So, the €45 million fee for the 23-year-old does seem a tad high. And West Ham may have to wait until the window reaches its final stages to see a possible reduction in the price tag.
