West Ham are one of the clubs linked with Zito Luvumbo by the Portuguese media.
According to A Bola, a host of clubs including West Ham and Manchester City want Zito. There were many teams scouting him at the U17 World Cup last month.
West Ham have been long-term admirers of the Angola attacker, who plays out wide or as a striker. Zito has already been capped by his country at senior level and he was one of the star performers for Angola’s U17s in November.
Man City are one of the latest clubs to enter this race. Pep Guardiola’s men, Red Bull Leipzig and Monaco have joined West Ham in this pursuit. Lille, Boavista and Flamengo also want Zito.
Flamengo – based in Brazilian city Rio de Janeiro – are set to face Liverpool in the Club World Cup final. They also want to sign on-loan striker Gabriel Barbosa (Gabigol) permanently. West Ham also want Barbosa and Zito so it’s a double battle between the Hammers and Flamengo.
Should West Ham sign Zito?
West Ham have been investing in their youth sides in the past few years. There are a number of quality young attacking players who could be pushing for first-team spots in the near future.
Recently, West Ham have signed promising young attackers like Xande Silva, Mesaque Dju and Mipo Odubeko. They join other promising starlets like Amadou Diallo, Veron Parkes and Anthony Scully in the Hammers academy.
Zito would probably fall into this category. The 17-year-old might not be an immediate first-team player for West Ham, despite playing regularly for Luanda-based team Primeiro de Agosto. But in the near future, he could be a household name.