West Ham confirm desire to sign £60m striker who Graham Potter knows well before deadline

TBR Football can exclusively reveal that West Ham United have confirmed their desire to sign Evan Ferguson this month, however, Brighton’s stance could complicate a deal.

West Ham want to sign a striker this month with Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio and Niclas Fullkrug all sidelined with injuries.

Ferguson is a player who the Hammers are very much interested in signing but so are four other Premier League clubs, including Bournemouth and Fulham.

A deal for the 20-year-old is being further complicated by Brighton who remain unsure whether to let him leave in the final week of the window.

Brighton want £60 million option for Evan Ferguson

Brighton are having doubts over whether to allow Evan Ferguson to leave on loan for two key reasons, sources have told TBR Football chief correspondent Graeme Bailey.

Firstly, Joao Pedro and Danny Welbeck have struggled with injury issues recently and the Seagulls do not want to leave Fabian Hurzeler’s attacking options short.

Meanwhile, Brighton owner Tony Bloom remains a big fan of Ferguson and even if a loan is agreed, any option would need to be in excess of £60 million, TBR Football understands.

The South Coast club want to avoid loaning him out to a club where he would potentially end up sitting on the bench, otherwise, he may as well just remain an option at the AMEX Stadium.

Ferguson also has interest from other European clubs with Celtic keen to land him and his former boss Roberto De Zerbi would welcome the chance to be reunited with him.

What other strikers could West Ham sign in the next week?

Last week, TBR Football reported that West Ham were trying to sign Brian Brobbey from Ajax and wanted to sign him on loan until the end of the season.

Potter has been offered many strikers recently and the Dutch international was a player who he was keen to sign.

Elsewhere, RB Leipizig’s Andre Silva remains an option for West Ham but they would also like Ferguson to come in to bolster their options.

Potter has previously worked with the Brighton striker although the Irish international only played five times when he was in charge of the Seagulls.

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