West Ham cast aside, with Man Utd and Newcastle ‘frontrunners’ to sign lethal striker despite one issue
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe and Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag
West Ham United may struggle to sign in-form striker Serhou Guirassy, as Manchester United and Newcastle United have been named as ‘frontrunners’ to snap him up.
Guirassy is a 27-year-old centre-forward who signed for Stuttgart from Rennes in July. Stuttgart only paid a reported €9million for Guirassy, but they could soon make a profit as he is lighting up the Bundesliga.
So far, the France-born Guinea international has registered a stunning 16 goals in just 11 league games. He has also netted two goals in two DFB-Pokal appearances, taking his record to 18 strikes from just 13 outings.
Only Bayern Munich ace Harry Kane is in better form in Germany, making Guirassy hot property around Europe.
Initially, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham, Fulham and Aston Villa were the main English clubs pursuing him. But it is a fast-moving situation and several other clubs – namely Man Utd and Newcastle – have since joined the hunt.
On November 30, it emerged that Man Utd are also targeting Guirassy. The Red Devils spent big money on Rasmus Hojlund in the summer but need another striker who can provide cover and competition for him, with Anthony Martial not up to standard. Guirassy would be a fantastic solution, especially as a release clause in his contract means he will only cost €17.5m (£15m).
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On Wednesday, reports in Germany labelled West Ham’s interest in the former Koln and Lille man ‘concrete’. But David Moyes looks set to miss out on this particular deal.
As per Football Insider, Man Utd and Newcastle have positioned themselves at the front of the queue for Guirassy’s capture and can now be considered ‘frontrunners’.
Man Utd, Newcastle leading Serhou Guirassy chase
Both sides are prepared to pay Guirassy’s release clause, as well as hand him a big contract, as they look to improve their respective attacks.
One potential issue is that Guirassy, who has scored three goals in 12 games for Guinea so far, will miss several Prem games next year as he will head to the Africa Cup of Nations.
The tournament will run from January 13 to February 11, with Guinea aiming to lift the trophy for the very first time.
During that period, both Man Utd and Newcastle are scheduled to play four leagues games each.
Football Insider add that Guirassy heading to AFCON will not stop them from signing him, as they believe the Bundesliga hitman can still have a huge impact for the rest of the campaign.
While Guirassy could arrive at Old Trafford next month, several Man Utd players are in line to move on. Recent reports suggest Casemiro and Raphael Varane are both targets for Saudi Pro League clubs, with the latter potentially linking up with Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr.
Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag has also ordered that winger Jadon Sancho be offloaded after the two fell out.
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