West Ham consider move for £45m Premier League ace who is also fancied by Tottenham
With Manchester City stepping up their interest in Lucas Paqueta, West Ham are considering a move for Nottingham Forest’s Brennan Johnson.
Pep Guardiola’s side have been tipped to land a deal for Paqueta as Fabrizio Romano recently confirmed the Premier League champions will submit a new offer.
West Ham rejected Man City’s opening offer of £70m, but their next bid could be enough to swing a deal.
The Hammers already have plenty of money to play with after they sold Declan Rice to Arsenal for £105m earlier in the window.
With the added funds that Paqueta will bring in, David Moyes already has his eyes set on some attacking reinforcements.
According to Jacob Steinberg, the Hammers are considering a move for Johnson as the club brace for a new bid from Man City for Paqueta.
Johnson had a terrific campaign for Nottingham Forest last season and he played a vital role in their survival push.
The Welsh forward scored eight goals and provided three assists in the Premier League last season.
Brentford tried to sign the 22-year-old earlier in the summer, but they were unsuccessful with a bid of £35m.
It is thought that a bid of around £45m could be enough for Forest to cash in. Johnson’s contract at the City Ground runs until 2026 and he has been at Forest throughout his entire professional career so far.
Along with West Ham, Tottenham are also said to be interested as they look for attacking reinforcements to offset the loss of Harry Kane.
West Ham aren’t just considering Johnson though as they are also in the race to sign Ajax playmaker Mohammed Kudus.
“West Ham now open initial talks to sign Mohammed Kudus — priority target in case Lucas Paqueta leaves to join Manchester City,” Romano confirmed.
“Positive talks on player side, Kudus open to the move — still waiting to approach Ajax as deal will depend on Paqueta.”
Kudus scored 18 goals across all competitions for Ajax last season and would be an excellent addition to David Moyes’ side.
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