Besiktas officials have jetted in to London for transfer talks with West Ham’s Javier Hernandez on their striker shopping list, according to a reliable journalist.
Bleacher Report correspondent Dean Jones has claimed on his personal Twitter account that representatives from the Turkish club are in the English capital to work on deals to land a new forward.
In addition to Hernandez, Jones explained that Besiktas are also interested in Arsenal fringe forward Danny Welbeck and Leicester City pair Kelechi Iheanacho and Islam Slimani.
Besiktas officials are in London on the hunt for a new striker. Chicharito, Welbeck, Iheanacho and Slimani all on their shopping list…
— Dean Jones (@DeanJonesBR) January 18, 2018
West Ham manager David Moyes has insisted it will take big money for his club to sell any of their major assets this month.
But the futures of the Hammers’ three senior centre-forwards, Hernandez, Andy Carroll and Diafro Sakho, are all in doubt after they failed to establish themselves as regulars in the starting XI in the first half of the season.
Good move for West Ham?
This Is Futbol rating 6/10
Hernandez arrived to much fanfare for a fee of £16million last summer but he has failed to live up to the reputation that once made him such a feared marksman in the Premier League and Bundesliga. He is not ideally suited to Moyes’ physical playing style, which asks the spearhead to play with his back to goal, and is far better off in a team that plays to his penalty box strengths and creates plenty of chances. Hernandez’s 21 West Ham appearances have yielded four goals but he has not scored since October and it is easy to see West Ham cashing in if they can recoup the fee they spent.
Likely to happen?
Aged 29 and robbed of some of the vim that once made him an electrifying presence, Hernandez appears better suited to the Turkish league than the Premier League. The move can get off the ground if he wants it, and the numbers add up. The word is that he is on a big salary at West Ham.
This Is Futbol rating 4/10