Manuel Lanzini’s future at West Ham United may be up in the air as the club continue to be linked with a summer move for attacker Brennan Johnson.
West Ham failed to do any business during the January transfer window as David Moyes put his trust in the group of players who qualified for the Europa League last season, but that could point towards a busier summer, with Championship sensation Brennan Johnson linked with a move earlier this week.
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The Hammers have been boosted in their hopes of signing Johnson this summer according to a report from Football Insider, which suggests that the 20-year old is claiming he’s in no rush whatsoever to extend his current contract at Nottingham Forest, which could be bad news for Lanzini.
The Argentine midfielder has not had the best of seasons, having registered four goals and two assists while being handed just 10 league starts and several cameo appearances off the bench, so his future under Moyes may not have been at the London Stadium anyway – but the potential arrival of Johnson could fully push him out the door…
Are Lanzini’s days numbered at West Ham?
It’s arguably quite surprising that Lanzini is still at West Ham, considering that since the beginning of the 2018/19 season, he’s started just 37 Premier League games, returning six goals and six assists – which suggests that he probably should’ve been moved on by now, particularly amid his injury woes.
Moyes already has exciting young attackers in his ranks such as Jarrod Bowen, Said Benrahma and, to an extent, 26-year-old Pablo Fornals, so bringing in Johnson, who’s lighting up the Championship with 10 goals and five assists could be an instant and long-term upgrade on Lanzini.
Johnson would not just be a player for now and the future, but could be someone that if his development goes the right way, could be sold for a huge profit considering that his quoted price tag in January was just £20m, according to Sky Sports (via Nottingham Forest News).
West Ham aren’t alone in the pursuit of Johnson, though, so Lanzini may yet get another lifeline to prove he’s been worth keeping around, however, if a bright young star arrives in the form of the Reds attacker, the long-time Hammers man could surely kiss goodbye to valuable first-team minutes in the league.
In other news: Pablo Fornals reacts to emerging news involving West Ham