Frank Lampard could be closer to signing one of his potential summer transfer targets after it was revealed that the player’s current club have identified his replacement.
According to France Football, Erick Pulgar could be on his way from Fiorentina to West Ham, and that move would allow the east Londoners to sell Declan Rice to their London rivals.
Football.london note a value of about £70m for the England international, and with Mark Noble getting no younger, it’s clear that the Hammers need a rock solid defensive midfielder in place if they’re going to try and improve upon their current lowly Premier League position.
At 26 years of age, Pulgar has the right amount of experience to be a hit in the English top flight, whilst also yet to reach his peak. To that end, any deal that West Ham might be able to do with La Viola for his services could benefit them immensely.
Losing Rice would arguably be a bitter blow, but if Pulgar settles quickly and provides the same sort of output as he has in Italy – four goals and three assists in 25 games according to Transfermarkt – then David Moyes might just have struck gold.