West Ham fans should keep a close eye on Russia striker Fyodor Smolov during the World Cup after the club looked at signing him in January, according to a reliable journalist.
Mirror correspondent Darren Lewis claimed on his personal Twitter account that Hammers should watch out for the 28-year-old, who has a number of Premier League clubs keeping tabs on him.
Lewis did not divulge whether West Ham are still in hot pursuit of Smolov, who leads the line for the host country in their opening fixture against Saudi Arabia on Thursday afternoon.
West Ham fans might take an interest in Fyodor Smolov if he starts for Russia against Saudi Arabia. Club looked at him in January and he has a few other Premier League admirers.
— Darren Lewis (@MirrorDarren) June 14, 2018
OPINION
With 12 goals from 32 Russia matches, it is little surprise that Smolov has been given the huge responsibility of leading the front line in the country’s first World Cup match on home soil. He has just come off a fine season for Krasnador, scoring 14 goals from 24 matches in all competitions and is regarded as the number one centre-forward in his homeland. His record for Krasnador is supreme, with 99 appearances yielding 63 goals and 20 assists. Could he cut it in the Premier League? Possibly, although there is quite a gap in quality between the Russian league and the English one. Nevertheless, West Ham are certainly in need of a forward who can provide competition for main man Marko Arnautovic next season. With Andy Carroll unable to stay fit for more than a handful of matches at a time and doubts over the future of Javier Hernandez, Hammers might well be minded to keep a beady eye on Smolov.
