West Ham have set their sights on a Diego Simeone transfer target amid technical director Tim Steidten's search for a new forward.
West Ham's need for more goal threat as they make early summer plans
Regardless of whether manager David Moyes will still be at the London Stadium post-June 30, with his contract set to expire on that date as things stand, there is little arguing that the east Londoners could do with more goal threat in their squad.
£60 million price drop as West Ham move for clinical striker
The Hammers arguably need a new front man.
ByEmilio Galantini
Michail Antonio (34) and Danny Ings (31) aren't getting any younger, and both have only scored a combined five Premier League goals this season.
Moyes' side are heavily reliant on star winger Jarrod Bowen for the majority of their goal threat, but as highlighted by the England international's recent injury, which caused him to miss their Europa League first-leg defeat to Bayer Leverkusen, they need other attacking outlets.
Jarrod Bowen
19
Mohammed Kudus
13
Tomas Soucek
9
Lucas Paqueta
8
James Ward-Prowse
6
West Ham failed to replace Gianluca Scamacca last summer, following the Italian's return to his homeland with Atalanta, and that is something which Steidten apparently intends to do when the window reopens.
Indeed, Brentford striker Ivan Toney is attracting interest from West Ham ahead of the summer, with his Bees deal expiring next year.
Toney will be a man in demand given his proven top-flight ability, having scored 20 league goals last season, so West Ham have alternatives to the former Peterborough United ace.
Steidten is thought to be keeping tabs on Toulouse's star Thijs Dallinga as another option from abroad, while it's also believed that they could add another threatening winger to their ranks to chip in going forward.
West Ham are casting their net far and wide in that regard, and South America could be a fruitful pool of talent for them.
West Ham set sights on Jhon Arias who's wanted by Simeone
This is where West Ham's interest in signing Fluminese forward Jhon Arias comes in.
The Colombia international, highlighted as "one of the players to watch" ahead of the summer's Copa America, is also a personal target of Atletico Madrid boss Simeone, according to journalist Christian Martin.
“[Atletico Madrid manager Diego] Simeone has him in the pipeline as an interested party. Jhon Arias could end up on Los Colchoneros’ team with a value between €15million and €17million," said Martin to Colombia's version of AS this week.
“West Ham, Burnley, Wolverhampton and Crystal Palace, would also be on the list of suitors.”
According to WhoScored, the 26-year-old is "very strong" at key passes in the final third and adept at both crossing and dribbling, which will come as enticing for supporters.