After missing out on Maxi Gomez to Valencia, West Ham have turned their attention to Sebastien Haller this summer.
The striker scored 20 goals in all competitions for Eintracht Frankfurt, as well as registering 20 assists, and that kind of form earned him plenty of attention in Europe.
West Ham were certainly impressed and the rumours suggest they will push hard for his signature after suffering disappointment with Gomez.
Whether Haller would be interested in the move is debatable, though, given Eintracht can offer him Europa League football again next season.
His teammate Marco Russ doesn’t see the move happening, making his feelings clear in a recent interview with Bild.
“West Ham? No, he will not do that,” was his short and dismissive answer to the newspaper when they asked him about the potential move.
Bild back his claim up with some information of their own, saying West Ham are ‘by no means one of the favourite clubs for which Haller has always wanted to play’ and saying that a team who finished tenth in the Premier League is not exactly a step up.
However, they do say that wages could play a part. Haller is a relatively low earner at Frankfurt and that may end up swaying his decision making.
In fact, they say ‘even a strong-minded and principled player like Haller could be weak’ to the money that would be on offer at the London Stadium.
That sets this one up quite interestingly.
Do West Ham want a striker that they had to convince to move to the club with big wages? After the Marko Arnautovic affair, you’d think not.
Having said that, they do desperately need a forward and Haller fits the profile. It seems, though, it will take big money in all parts to get him.
