West Ham United are working to part ways with Niclas Füllkrug this summer, however, they won’t just accept any kind of exit.
The 33-year-old arrived at the Hammers in August 2024, after a good spell of goalscoring in Germany. He’s been prolific for both Werder Bremen and Borussia Dortmund, and was part of the national team set-up.
Whilst it was widely thought West Ham had overpaid, at around €30m, there was still confidence Füllkrug would have an impact.
Loan move to AC Milan but not again
Niclas Füllkrug was very fortunate during the January 2026 window to get himself a loan move to AC Milan. For the Rossoneri it was always a temporary solution, with little intention to consider the striker in the long term.
Subsequently, the option to buy wasn’t even considered this summer. West Ham don’t want to find themselves in a similar situation next year.
However, they’re going to struggle to find anyone to buy the veteran.
Had a move to Venice lined up
Monday’s print edition of Bild, reports Niclas Füllkrug had a transfer to Venezia lined up. The striker jumped at the chance to move to Venice, even though it would have presented a major pay cut.
Venezia were promoted to Serie A this summer and agreed personal terms with the German forward. However, West Ham demanding an excessive transfer fee has closed that route.
West Ham trying to force issue
The Championship club haven’t given Niclas Füllkrug a shirt number in the squad. On top of that he’s not allowed to train with West Ham’s main squad.
Essentially, he’s been sent to the bomb squad, like Ruben Amorim did with multiple Manchester United players last year.
Whether that works for West Ham or not is questionable. It is highly unlikely the Hammers will find a club to pay a reasonable fee for Niclas Füllkrug.
