According to a report from Mundo Deportivo, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola ‘loves’ alleged West Ham target Mikel Oyarzabal. And the Spaniard could bring the Real Sociedad ace to the Etihad with Leroy Sane having left to link up with Bayern Munich.
In other news…Message for the three Daves…please don’t do it
Guardiola will clearly need to bolster his attacking options this summer, especially in the left and right wing departments.
And the same applies to Hammers boss David Moyes at the London Stadium.
The Sun claimed recently that the West Ham manager would love to bring the Real Sociedad winger to east London this summer.
But if Guardiola is indeed intent on signing Oyarzabal, as Mundo Deportivo claim he is, the Hammers will really have their work cut-out in the race for the Spaniard’s signature.
Stats
The 23-year-old has been in scintillating form for Sociedad this season. He has racked up 10 goals and 10 assists in 34 La Liga outings thus far (Transfermarkt).
In those 34 appearances, Oyarzabal has averaged 1.8 shots, 1.4 key passes and 1.9 dribbles per game. During those appearances, The seven-capped Spain international has averaged 28.4 passes per game with an impressive completion rate of 77.4% (Who Scored).
He is one of the most exciting young players in La Liga according to the Sun.
Moyes knows all about Oyarzabal. The Scot gave the young winger his debut during his time in charge at the Anoeta Stadium way back in 2015.
The 23-year-old would be a truly exceptional signing for West Ham. But his reported £45 million price-tag (Calcio Mercato) and Guardiola’s alleged love for him now makes signing him a next to impossible task for Moyes.
Hopefully Real Sociedad will be willing to sell the winger for a reduced fee because of the manner in which the global health crisis has impacted the market, however. And perhaps then the Hammers will still have a chance of signing him.