Transfer insider Dean Jones believes that West Ham United may be able to secure a deal to sign French striker Ludovic Ajorque in this transfer window.
The Hammers are attempting to bolster their squad this month as they look to boost the club’s chances of qualifying for the Champions League this season.
What’s the latest with West Ham?
The club have struggled somewhat in the winter market to secure new acquisitions.
Manager David Moyes has been open about his desire to bring new players into the club as the Hammers aim to keep their momentum going at the top level of the table.
The Irons have been linked with a number of defenders, including Burnley’s James Tarkowski, and Liverpool’s Nat Phillips, but the club have not managed to strike a deal for either.
The club have also been linked with Ajorque as Moyes aims to bring a new striker into the club to support and provide back-up to Michail Antonio, who remains the sole senior centre-forward.
The 27-year-old has been with Strasbourg since 2018 and has been in thoroughly decent form for the club.
He has scored 48 goals in 121 games, while netting 10 times in Ligue 1 this season in 19 appearances.
Ajorque, who stands at 6ft 6in tall, is valued at £13.5m by Transfermarkt and Jones believes that there may be an opportunity for West Ham to secure his signature because of the compressed nature of finances within Ligue 1 at this point.
What did Jones say?
Speaking to GiveMeSport, he said: “On the back of French football struggling through the pandemic last year, there's a feeling that you can get players out of clubs that usually might not be able to go yet.
“So it will still be a struggle to sign him because a team like that aren't going to want to lose their star player but there is some optimism.”
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How good is Ajorque?
His name has somewhat come out of nowhere when it comes to the links with the Hammers.
Per fbref, he is statistically comparable to Aston Villa striker Ollie Watkins and AC Milan’s Olivier Giroud.
He presses hard from the front and is a real threat in the air; he wins an average of 5.38 aerial duels per game for Strasbourg.
His finishing is not actually exceptional, with his goalscoring statistics all fairly middling.
But he works hard and is clearly an option for a team that likes to press from the front and move the ball up the pitch quickly, exactly like West Ham.
This could well be a good deal for the Hammers to do.