West Ham ‘contact’ Ligue 1 club over €20m striker

Jason Soutar
Reported West Ham target Mohamed Bayo celebrates his goal

West Ham are amongst three English clubs interested in signing Clermont Foot striker Mohamed Bayo, according to reports.

The Hammers are looking to improve their strength in depth up front with Michail Antonio being their only out-and-out striker in the first-team squad.

Jarrod Bowen has played up top in Antonio’s absence, but is not a feasible second choice for the remainder of the season.


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January could be a big month for West Ham, who need to recruit defensive reinforcements after long-term injuries to Angelo Ogbonna and Kurt Zouma.

According to French outlet Le10 Sport (via HITC), however, David Moyes will look to bring in Bayo, who has scored eight goals in 16 Ligue 1 matches this term.

Only four players have bagged more than the 23-year-old in France’s top flight. Bayo is currently outscoring Paris Saint-Germain trio Neymar, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe.

The Guinea international has accounted for 42 per cent of Clermont’s goals this term, so may look to keep Bayo on loan until the end of the season as they bid to avoid relegation.

The report adds that Clermont desire €20m for the striker, two months after he signed a new three-year contract.

Ahead of West Ham’s match against Burnley on Sunday, Moyes has emphasised the importance of consistently raising expectations.

“I think raising expectations is part of the manager’s job because it probably means you are doing well with the team,” he said.

“When you raise then you start saying, ‘Hang on a minute, this is expecting a lot of a team that is relatively new’.

“I think our rapid climb to the higher reaches of the Premier League is something that has been unbelievable, it has been a great achievement and not only that but to keep it going.

“We have only been doing this for a year and a half, we were in the relegation zone a year and a half ago.

“So we are at the early stages of being a side who has got big expectations but I am quite happy that we have got big expectations and I hope we are able to keep it up. Maybe we can, maybe we can’t.”