It has been well documented in various media sources that West Ham have been searching for a top striker for next season, as I have reported on various times in previous articles. However, it seems that Alexandre Lacazette is not coming to London due to demands not being met, so should West Ham go for his younger striker partner instead?
Michy Batshuayi is a 22 year old Belgian striker who currently plays for Marseille in Ligue 1. Looking at his record at the French club, he has scored 26 goals in 62 appearances which is a good return for someone so young. With his height standing at 5ft 11in he may not be a good target man, but his good upper body strength may be able to provide much needed muscle to the Hammers front line.
The major positive for West Ham securing the young Belgian’s signature is that Marseille is in financial difficulty and need to sell the striker before the 30th June in order to help the club with their debts. The price being quoted is around £30 million which is the same as West Ham have offered for Lacazette, who doesn’t even want to join the club.
The negative for West Ham is that Tottenham are also interested in Batshuayi. This proves a problem as the North London club does have Champions League football next season and most players wish to play in the biggest club competition in the world. Yes, West Ham is in the Europa League but maybe the thought of playing in the bigger competition will sway the striker’s decision.
In conclusion, I think that West Ham should sign Batshuayi instead of Lacazette as Batshuayi actually wants to come to the club and also he is younger than his strike partner so he can provide many more years’ service for the East London club.