On Monday, Sky Sports claimed that West Ham, following the departure of Diafra Sakho to Rennes, were interested in FK Krasnodar’s Fedor Smolov.
The Russian striker, who has scored 10 goals in 15 appearances in all competitions this season, was said to be a loan target for West Ham, while the Russian side wanted £12m, but that’s all the information we found.
Over in Russia, there has been very little to talk about, with most outlets relaying Sky Sports’ claims, offering no detail of their own.
Of course, that doesn’t mean West Ham aren’t interested, but it likely means Krasnodar are just playing hardball and would rather keep their star striker for the remainder of the current season.
One man who has commented on this, however, is Russia’s national team manager, and he hinted quite heavily that a transfer wasn’t on the cards for the 27-year-old.
Relayed by Ria Novosti, Stanislav Cherchesov said: “Can Smolov play abroad? I believe in my players. I talked with Fedor and he knows that any decision in his career will be his own.
“I think he will stay at Krasnodar until the World Cup and, if he shows himself, he can then get interesting offers, but this doesn’t mean he can’t move now.”
An undisputed starter for his country ever since midway through 2017, Smolov looks like a guaranteed inclusion in Cherchesov’s squad come the end of the season as things stand.
However, a move abroad could put that in jeopardy if he doesn’t hit the ground running straight away, and that’s something the forward will undoubtedly be thinking about if West Ham come knocking.
