West Ham United are in the hunt to sign Real Betis striker Antonio Sanabria, according to Marca.
The Spanish newspaper report that the Hammers are preparing a £20million bid for the 22-year-old Paraguay international, who scored eight goals in 17 games in all competitions last season.
Marca claim that Betis were planning to keep hold of Sanabria this summer, but if such a bid from West Ham were to come in then they may reassess their plans.
It is said that Betis only own 50% of the rights to Sanabria, with Roma owning the other 50%, meaning they would be in line to receive half the transfer fee.
OPINION
And the Hammers are linked to yet another player as Manuel Pellegrini’s search for a striker goes on. The club are repeatedly being linked to players from South America this summer, and that is likely to do with the appointment of Mario Husillos as director of football. Sanabria is the latest player to be linked, and is unfortunately the least inspiring of those rumoured so far. The Paraguay international is obviously a talented young player, still being just 22 years old, but there are better options on the table, especially for a fee of £20million. In any case, it is unlikely that the Hammers have that kind of money to spend after an outlay of more than £80million so far, and this one looks like a non-starter. The likelihood is that the club will sign someone on the cheap or on loan in the coming days, and it looks unlikely to be Sanabria, with this deal also having the added complication of Roma owning 50% of his rights.
