Journalist Pete O’Rourke has confirmed that West Ham United have made a bid to sign Gabriel Barbosa from Flamengo on an initial loan deal.

Barbosa, known as Gabigol in his homeland of Brazil, has been heavily linked with a potential move to the London Stadium this month.

What’s the latest with West Ham?

They are continuing to push for qualification to the Champions League and currently sit fourth in the Premier League table.

However, the Hammers have three games in hand on fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur, who are only a point behind them after their dramatic 3-2 win over Leicester City on Wednesday evening.

West Ham have not signed a new player in the January transfer window although manager David Moyes has admitted that he would like to strengthen his squad.

The Irons only have one senior striker at the club, in Michail Antonio, so it is natural that manager Moyes would like to sign a new forward in this transfer window.

Barbosa has been in electric form for Flamengo since his arrival in 2020 and has scored 84 goals in 123 games for the club. Opta has previously labelled him "lethal" after scoring 11 goals in a single Copa Libertadores tournament. 

A Brazil international with 17 caps, and five goals to his name, Barbosa has also been linked with a potential switch to Newcastle United.

And O’Rourke has now reported that West Ham are interested in signing the 25-year-old on an initial loan deal that could become a permanent deal down the line.

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What did O’Rourke say?

Speaking to GiveMeSport, he said: “They're still in and around Gabigol but the problem is Flamengo would prefer a straight-up sale for the Brazilian striker.

“West Ham are trying to negotiate a loan deal with an option to buy and so far Flamengo are not interested in that, so it's a bit of a stalemate at the minute.”

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Would Gabigol be good?

He’s been electric for Flamengo but he has played in Europe before and hasn’t exactly set the world alight.

He played 10 times for Inter Milan and scored once, while also scoring once for Benfica in five games.

Still, West Ham really need to sign a new forward in this transfer window in order to support Antonio and bolster their bid to qualify for Europe.

Barbosa is valued at £23.4m by Transfermarkt and a deal at that sort of price would actually be an excellent one for the Irons to do, as they will have some real depth in their attack, and some tactical flexibility.

Indeed, Gabigol can play on the wing as well as up front, and he would be a real upgrade on Andriy Yarmolenko, who is an ageing presence in the squad at 32.