West Ham have been handed a shock opportunity to finally sign Jhon Duran after a stunning twist five months on from making a £57m bid for the striker.
If West Ham fans thought the Jhon Duran saga was over, think again.
This time last year West Ham were having discussions with Aston Villa over signing the brilliant Colombian.
At one stage Duran looked nailed on to sign for West Ham after doing the crossed Hammers gesture live on social media, while he was away with the Colombian national team.
After a drawn-out back-and-forth between West Ham and Villa, technical director Tim Steidten decided not to pay the £45m asking price.
West Ham failed with £57.5m Duran bid in January
Instead the German wanted to use his striker budget across two signings – bringing in Niclas Fullkrug and Luis Guilherme.
Hammers fans were gutted when their long-running interest in Duran amounted to nothing.
The fiery star went on to have a brilliant first half of last season with Villa – including scoring the winner against the Hammers on the opening day of the season.
That set the tone of disappointment for the entire campaign. But when January rolled around, and with Graham Potter taking over, the Hammers tried again.
West Ham confirmed they made a staggering £57.5m bid for Duran in the winter window – a club record.
Villa rejected the offer and sold him to mega rich Saudi side Al-Nassr for around £65m – where he joined up with Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane.
David Sullivan and the club’s board were accused of ‘phantom bids and faux ambition’ by cynics.
That was perfectly reasonable given the owners had been pleading poverty over PSR.
West Ham explained themselves over that record Duran bid – confirming it was being made with the view of making sales to offset the cost.
Fullkrug and Guilherme have barely featured for West Ham since Steidten’s fateful decision.
West Ham get chance to finally sign Duran in stunning twist
And both players have been tipped to leave the London Stadium this summer.
West Ham are once again on the hunt for a new striker – but have no money for permanent deals until sales are made.
Now, out of the blue, the club has been handed a chance at redemption.
A shock opportunity for West Ham to finally sign Duran has opened up after a stunning Al Nassr twist.
Duran has scored eight goals in 12 games in the Saudi Pro League since moving to Al Nassr.
Duran allowed to leave on loan amid personal struggles
But now Al Nassr are planning to let Duran leave on loan for next season as he has failed to settle in Saudi and is ‘struggling mentally and personally’.
That’s according to an exclusive from leading Saudi newspaper Al-Riyadh.
The outlet says sources have told them Duran will be with a new club for the new season.
The report states sources have explained the West Ham target will be loaned out due to ‘difficulties he is facing on a personal level, which have affected his mental state and technical stability’.
Clubs have already expressed a willingness to sign Duran on loan with the ‘final picture regarding Duran’s future is expected to become clearer in the coming days’.
West Ham fans will dearly be hoping their club is one of those who have expressed interest.
This will really test the ambition of the owners amid criticism from fans.
If the Hammers were willing to pay over £57m for Duran five months ago then surely they can find the funds for a small loan fee and a proportion of the striker’s wages?
With Duran desperate to get back on European soil according to the report, West Ham could benefit from the perfect storm.
With no significant money to spend until players are sold, Duran is being offered on a silver platter in a loan deal nobody would have seen coming.
It’s a chance West Ham simply can’t afford to turn down – quite literally.
And what a huge boost it would give to the club’s summer business – suddenly the entire fanbase would be lifted and enthused.
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