Every single summer at West Ham United, there is one transfer rumour which just won’t go away.
It was Carlos Bacca in 2016. More recently, Jhon Duran.
This time around, Baris Alper Yilmaz may be the West Ham United link destined to be repeated ad nauseam throughout gossip columns both at home and abroad.
West Ham reportedly saw a bid rejected by Galatasaray in January, the Turkish Super Lig champions holding out for in excess of £21 million.
The versatile forward remains an object of considerable affection four months on. TBR Football reports that The Hammers scouted Alper Yilmaz during Galatasaray’s Istanbul derby defeat by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Besiktas in the early spring.
Now, reports are suggesting that – if the Turkey international is to become a big-money addition to Graham Potter’s squad – Yilmaz is likely to join the likes of Sebastien Haller, Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta among the club’s most expensive-ever acquisitions.
Photo by Hakan Akgun/Anadolu via Getty Images
Photo by Hakan Akgun/Anadolu via Getty Images
West Ham United move for Baris Alper Yilmaz talked up
Speaking to Haber Sari Kirmizi, reporter Sezgin Gelmez claims that, while a move to the London Stadium is very much ‘on the table’, Galatasaray still intend to bring in somewhere in the region of 35 million euros.
Or, to make things a little clearer, £29.5 million.
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“Baris Alper Yilmaz’s transfer to West Ham is on the table,” Gelmez claims. “Galatasaray expects 30-35 million euros from the sale of Baris Alper Yilmaz.”
Scorer of 14 goals and provider of six assists this term, Alper Yilmaz led the line for Turkey during their run to the quarter-finals of the European Championships but has been utilised more regularly as a winger at club level.
He featured more often than not as a right-footed forward cutting in off the left-hand side. He is one of a number of left-sided attackers on the radar – West Ham reportedly like Celtic’s Daizen Maeda too – amid concerns over Crysencio Summerville’s disappointing, injury-hit debut season at the London Stadium.
Summerville has not featured since January with a season-ending hamstring issue.
“They usually compare me to Mbappe,” Yilmaz once told TRT Spor, his searing pace drawing comparisons with the Real Madrid superstar amongst a number of other household name forwards. “(But) the biggest name I take as an example is Cristiano Ronaldo.
“Of course, I have dreams. As a Turk, I want to represent my country abroad [but] I do not look into transfer matters at all. I am focused on my work. My agent deals with those issues.
“If it happens, what is necessary will be done. (But) I love watching the Premier League.”
Yilmaz has been likened to Gareth Bale and Phil Foden
Amid suggestions that Michail Antonio may not be offered a new contract by The Hammers, Alper Yilmaz could be the club’s most adaptable, physically imposing attacker since the veteran forward’s heyday. Another capable of playing all across the frontline, while striking fear into the hearts of opposition defenders with his brutal acceleration and broad-shouldered power,
“I compare Baris Alper Yilmaz to Gareth Bale in terms of strength. He has the ability to sprint three or four meters after eliminating the opponent with the ball,” added Ilker Puren, Yilmaz’s former coach at Ankara Keciorengucu speaking to GS Gazete.
“One day, he will definitely play in the Premier League because physics comes to the fore there. He has also improved his positional knowledge.
“The level he is at now is close to Phil Foden.”