West Ham officials are to jet out to Rome next week for face-to-face talks with their Lazio counterparts about signing Felipe Anderson, according to the Guardian.
The newspaper claim the London club are ready to back up their strong interest in the Brazilian attacker by tabling a £30.8million bid plus add-ons.
The Guardian report that West Ham are hopeful of securing an agreement with Lazio during negotiations next week after manager Manuel Pellegrini gave the green light to sign Anderson.
OPINION
Reports in Italy over the last week have claimed West Ham’s interest in Anderson is genuine and sustained. With the English media now following suit, it appears the club have a real chance of signing a player who could transform an attack that was overly reliant on the pace and power of Marko Arnautovic in the recently-completed season. Hammers’ followers won’t be counting their chickens yet, but their club are certainly working on a deal for a bona fide star. Anderson plays predominantly on the right side of the attack, but is versatile and can operate in a number of positions. He is quick, mobile and clever, and his record for scoring and creating goals is impressive. The Brazil international scored eight goals and supplied 10 assists in 2017-18 despite missing half of the season through injury and, since joining Lazio in 2013, his five years have yielded 34 goals and 42 assists from 177 matches in total.
