West Ham are planning a move for Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Exequiel Palacios, according to reports.
Sky Sports claim that the 26-year-old, who was part of Argentina’s World Cup-winning squad in 2022, is on a list of “names”, along with Aston Villa’s Jacob Ramsey, as the Hammers look to strengthen their options in the middle of the park.
Palacios has spent the last five and a half years at Leverkusen, having signed from River Plate at the start of 2020. He has gone on to play 160 times for the German club, winning the Bundesliga title and the Deutche Pokal during his spell at the BayArena.
Most Read on Hammers Headlines
The midfielder has been capped 36 times by Argentina, having made three appearances at the World Cup in Qatar.
Ten Hag is fighting to keep hold of Palacios
Former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag is now in charge at Leverkusen, but he has suffered an exodus of key players. Even before Granit Xhaka’s move to Sunderland was sanctioned, he was urging the club not to sell the Swiss veteran, as he felt that too many had left already:
“This club has already lost three important players. We won’t let any more players go, that’s not possible. That would neglect the structure and also the culture of the squad.”
You can only imagine what ten Hag would say if West Ham made an offer for Palacios.
West Ham have lost the battle for another midfielder
The Irons were interested in signing Chelsea’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall but the 26-year-old is now expected to join Everton after the Toffees agreed a fee worth £25m up front, and another £5m in add-ons.
Considering that Graham Potter’s side were hoping to snap up the player on a loan-to-buy deal, it does appear as if the club never stood any chance of getting him anyway.
In other news, West Ham have lined up a move for £20m-rated Liverpool winger