West Ham will be hoping for a productive summer transfer window following a disappointing campaign last season.
The club struggled under Julen Lopetegui, who was eventually sacked and replaced by former Brighton and Chelsea boss Graham Potter.
Potter managed to guide the club to a 14th-place finish in the Premier League. However, he will now be looking at backing from club owners to take West Ham to a top half finish.
Among the players linked with a move is former Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha.
Joao Palhinha poses with the Nations League trophy after winning it with Portugal
Photo by Maja Hitij – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
Graham Potter wants to sign Joao Palhinha at West Ham
Palhinha is attracting plenty of interest from the Premier League after his difficult stint at Bayern Munich.
TBR Football chief correspondent Graeme Bailey understands that a host of clubs are keeping tabs on his situation. Among them are West Ham and Fulham, while Manchester United and Arsenal were also interested in him in the past.
Bailey claims that Potter would love him at West Ham; however, the Hammers cannot spend before selling first.
Fulham are also in the conversation and a loan move to the Cottagers cannot be ruled out.
Speaking to TBR Football, Bailey said:
“I do know that Fulham have kept in touch but I guess that was part of their deal that they would.
“I know that Graeme Potter would love him at West Ham, but West Ham are in all sorts of problems. They can’t do anything until they get player sales.
“But obviously, Palhinha, the deal he’s on. I guess anyone would struggle to do a permanent deal. But I think Palhinha is one to keep an eye on. I think we could see him come back. I don’t see him going anywhere but London. I wouldn’t rule out a Fulham loan, I really wouldn’t.”
Nani has picked Joao Palhinha over Declan Rice
Arsenal were strongly linked with Palhinha last summer, but the midfielder rejected the Gunners and joined Bayern Munich instead for £47m.
In hindsight, the Gunners may not feel they missed out after seeing Palhinha struggle at Germany, especially since they have Declan Rice who has been sensational for Arsenal.
However, not everyone sees Rice as the superior player. Former Manchester United winger Nani previously claimed Palhinha is the better of the two.
Speaking to talkSPORT on TikTok, Nani was asked to choose between Palhinha and Rice while comparing Portugal’s squad to England’s, and he opted for the former Fulham star.
With the 29-year-old now being linked with a return to the Premier League, it remains to be seen whether he can rediscover the form that earned him so many plaudits at Craven Cottage.