West Ham United are looking to make a big transfer coup with the transfer of Felipe Anderson from Lazio.
The Brazilian striker is comparable to Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford as the Hammers look for additional attacking options.
Although Felipe Anderson will become a free agent in the summer and a number of clubs are expected to line up for his signature, West Ham are trying to anticipate this and are paying compensation for his signing from Lazio this month.
Sky Sports reports that David Moyes’ selectors are hoping that such a move will give them an edge in the battle for the transfer of the 30-year-old winger.
The deal could be attractive for Lazio, who are ninth in Serie A, but are by no means ruled out of contention for a Champions League place next season. It could be a stumbling block in West Ham’s plan, especially since the weak side of the Romans’ game is their attacking play.
Lazio have scored just 21 Serie A goals this season and Felipe Anderson, whose estimated transfer value is €13.1 million, has been involved in six of them, creating five and scoring another.
West Ham wants Felipe Anderson from last season:
It is well known, however, that West Ham need attacking options.
Only Manchester United have scored fewer goals in the top half of the Premier League table than Moyes’ team, which was without Michail Antonio for most of the first half of the season through injury.
Manchester City is also under pressure to sign Kladivar teammate Lucas Paqueta, as the investigation into the Brazilian’s alleged involvement in a bookmaking scandal puts the brakes on a potential deal. Paqueta strongly rejects these claims.
The similarity between Felipe Anderson and Rashford in their style of play last season is obvious, with both leaning heavily towards an inside-forward style, although the Man Utd star has shown a greater propensity to play as a natural winger.
This season, the Brazilian has been deployed more as a classical winger, which has reduced his contribution to scoring goals. Last term, he scored nine goals in 38 Serie A appearances in a more central role and that is exactly the kind of return West Ham would like to see from him.